


Brighter Days

by lionheartedghost



Series: Brighter Days [1]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fluff, Flufftober, Gen, M/M, i want them all to be happy so I'm writing it, they deserve happiness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2021-01-04 02:16:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 18,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21189911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lionheartedghost/pseuds/lionheartedghost
Summary: Prompt fills (Flufftober and requested) for 9-1-1. Some Buddie, some Bathena, some Madney, and some of the whole Fire Family together.Also posted on Tumblr.#32: “I’m sorry,” Chim lowered his hands from his face. “What was that you just said about the greatest cinematic trilogy of the 20th century?”“Cap,” Buck whined, tipping his head back against the couch cushions; he sought out Bobby and Athena behind them in the firehouse kitchen. “Tell them it’s not my fault I don’t know old stuff.”Buck calls Athena ‘Mom’.





	1. Buddie + Dancing

**Author's Note:**

> I love 9-1-1 a lot and I really want to see the characters happy, so here I am. Flufftober prompts taken from giucorreias on Tumblr. Work title taken from the song 'Brighter Days' by The Light The Heat.
> 
> Flufftober Prompt #1, 'Dancing'. 
> 
> (Doesn’t really fit canon, but would probably be set in an alternate season 3 where Buck heals up without any issues and gets straight back to work.)

Eddie wasn’t really a fan of parties. They were loud and busy and full of couples, and since he and Shannon had split every party had inevitably ended with him stood alone in a corner or sat alone at a table, watching a roomful of people laugh and dance and enjoy themselves in a way he hadn’t since who knew when.  
  
So no, Eddie didn’t like parties at all, but when Bobby and Athena had decided to throw a belated wedding reception, he couldn’t exactly _not_ show up. Besides, he _wanted_ to show up, to be there for them even if he’d end up awkward and alone by the end of the evening. So he dug out his suit, searched Christopher’s wardrobe for the smartest clothes he owned, bought what he thought passed as a decent bottle of wine to gift a newly-married couple, and hoped for the best.  
  
The venue wasn’t dissimilar to the place where he and Shannon had had their own reception years ago: a decent-sized hall with wooden flooring so shiny it reflected the spotlights over the makeshift dance floor, paper decorations thrown over beams and wrapped around pillars. The hall was already over halfway-full with family members and coworkers and friends of friends Eddie couldn’t place, all so absorbed in their own conversations they barely noticed as he and Christopher walked in. Eddie swallowed, straightened his tie, and rested a hand on Christopher’s back.  
  
“Is Buck here?” Christopher craned his neck hopefully, trying to peer through the groups of strangers.  
  
Eddie mustered a smile. “I’m not sure, buddy. I’m sure he will be, though, eventually.” But Christopher’s eyes had already lit up, a beam stretching from ear to ear.  
  
“Buck!”  
  
Buck weaved his way through the crowds and grinned back. His tie was a little crooked, Eddie noticed; he resisted the urge to reach out and fix it for him. “Hey, Christopher!” Buck’s eyes, warm, reassuring, flickered to Eddie’s face. “I was starting to wonder if you guys were gonna show.”  
  
“Fashionably late,” Eddie smiled apologetically. “We’re here now.”  
  
“Good.” There was a look in Buck’s eyes that Eddie couldn’t quite place, written in the lines of his face. It lingered for another moment before he seemed to remember himself, his grin wavering a little. “We’re over in the corner, Maddie and Chim and Hen and Karen and me. Want me to save you a spot?”  
  
“Sure.” Eddie moved his hand to rest it briefly on Christopher’s shoulder. “Hey, bud, why don’t you go back with Buck while I say hi to Bobby and Athena?”  
  
“Okay!” Christopher turned away as if he only had eyes for Buck - and honestly, Eddie wouldn’t be surprised if he did. He _idolised_ Buck. Buck laughed.  
  
“See you in a minute,” he said to Eddie, before steering Christopher through the busy hall. Even over the hum of conversation spread throughout the room, Eddie could still hear the sound of his son’s voice excitedly relaying every important detail Buck needed to know about everything that had happened in the three days since Christopher had last seen him.  
  
Eddie managed to find his way through to the centre of the hubbub for long enough to hug Bobby, kiss Athena on the cheek and congratulate them again.  
  
“Thanks for inviting us,” he added, glancing over his shoulder to where Christopher appeared to be mid-conversation with Chimney. “We really appreciate it.”  
  
“Of course,” Bobby shook his head almost in disbelief. “You’re family.”  
  
Eddie nodded, breaking eye contact until he could be certain the lump in his throat had gone. He left Athena and Bobby with the still-building crowd of well-wishers and found his way to the spot Buck had saved him at their table, ruffling Christopher’s hair as he passed him.  
  
“Hey,” Buck smiled up at him, and there was something about that look that felt like sunlight breaking through clouds. “You alright?”  
  
“Yeah.” Eddie sat down beside him, studying him surreptitiously. Buck’s tie was still just off-centre, like he’d made a valiant attempt at fixing it but hadn’t quite succeeded. “Just… parties aren’t really my thing.”  
  
“Maybe you just haven’t been to a decent party before,” Buck grinned.  
  
But Eddie had been to enough parties to know how they went. The last of the guests drifted in and said their hellos and found spaces to gather. People waited eagle-eyed for someone to make the first move to the buffet table, springing up from their seats determined to be next in line. The music kicked in a little later, and the last half-dozen parties he’d been unable to worm his way out of came to mind. He knew this part well enough. The seats around him would begin to empty as couples drifted over to the dance floor, and he’d play I Spy with Chris to keep him entertained and wonder why he hadn’t just taken him to the movies or something.  
  
It happened almost exactly as he’d thought it would. The guests. The food. The music. Maddie had pulled Chim to his feet and Hen and Karen had followed on their heels, and he’d stayed at the table with Chris. But they hadn’t been left completely alone.  
  
Buck had stayed.  
  
He was deep in conversation with Christopher, his eyes crinkled as he attempted to fold a napkin into an elephant. So far, all he seemed to have made was a slightly squished rectangle; Christopher had his head thrown back in laughter. Buck stared down at the napkin in his hands, a bemused wrinkle of confusion between his eyebrows.  
  
“I swear this is how you do it,” he said, more to himself than anyone else. “Maddie showed me years ago. It can’t be that hard.”  
  
“Why don’t you try something easier?” Eddie teased. “Like a boat. Or maybe just a square.”  
  
Buck stuck his tongue out in reply; Christopher laughed again.  
  
“You’re welcome to try it yourself.” Buck threw a spare napkin at him and turned back to his fourth attempt.  
  
Eddie raised his hands in surrender. “I think I’ll leave that to you.” He watched the way Buck’s hands moved, saw the focus on his face, the sheer determination in his eyes as he tried to make something that would impress Christopher. Honestly, everything Buck did impressed Christopher anyway.  
  
The music in the room changed. The electro sounds of a pop song Eddie didn’t quite recognise (and God, that made him feel old) faded away, and something slower took its place, acoustic guitars and soft vocals.  
  
The couples in the room moved closer. Athena and Bobby were so close their foreheads almost touched; Hen and Karen twined their fingers together; Maddie rested her chin on Chimney’s shoulder.  
  
“Dad,” Christopher tried his best to whisper over the table, his hand pressed to the side of his mouth as if he could keep Buck from hearing the words. Buck smiled, continuing to haphazardly fold the napkin in his hands as if he hadn’t heard anything.  
  
“Yeah?” Eddie whispered back.  
  
Christopher leaned forwards conspiratorially, fingers clutching at the edge of the table. “Now you have to dance with Buck.”  
  
Eddie blinked. Buck raised his eyebrows, glancing across at Eddie without comment.  
  
“I, uh…” Eddie cleared his throat. “What do you mean, buddy?”  
  
“You have to dance with who you love,” Christopher said simply. “Like Bobby and Athena and Chimney and Maddie and Hen and Karen. You love Buck so you have to dance with Buck.”  
  
Eddie could feel his face burning red; he only hoped the lighting was low enough that Buck wouldn’t notice. “Chris-”  
  
“Come on, Dad.”  
  
“I…” Eddie caught Buck’s eye and paused. Buck was looking at him, but there was no embarrassment in his gaze, nor was there a throwaway laugh ready on his lips. He was waiting. Waiting to see how Eddie would respond. He looked almost… almost nervous.  
  
Christopher rested his elbows on the table.  
  
“Listen, bud, I don’t think Buck wants to-”  
  
“I don’t mind,” Buck interrupted. He flushed. “I mean, you know. If you don’t… whatever, it doesn’t-“  
  
“No, I just-”  
  
“We don’t-”  
  
Christopher held his chin in his hand and sighed emphatically.  
  
Slowly, hesitantly, Buck dropped the napkin and stood. He tried to give an effortless shrug, something that might at the very least feign nonchalance, but his fingers were clumsy as he tugged at the cuffs of his sleeves. “Chris is probably smarter than me, honestly.” He gave an uncertain smile. “If he says we should dance, I’m not gonna argue with him.”  
  
Eddie wiped his clammy palms against his pant legs as he stood. “Buck,” he said quietly, his mouth suddenly dry, “you don’t have to, really.”  
  
“I know,” Buck replied. He rubbed his thumb absently against his wrist. “But I want to. Is that… is that okay?”  
  
Eddie moved around the table until Buck stood directly in front of him. Buck swallowed. Eddie reached out, the fabric of Buck’s tie soft against his skin as he straightened it.  
  
“I’ve wanted to do that all evening,” he said, eyes drifting upwards to meet Buck’s. Buck chewed the inside of his lip.  
  
“Well, I guess we should…” He rested his hand on Eddie’s forearm tentatively, as if he wanted to guide him over to the middle of the room but didn’t quite know how to find the courage.  
  
Eddie glanced at his son. Christopher beamed back at him, tilting his head to urge them towards the dance floor.  
  
Eddie took a deep breath. He placed a hand on Buck’s elbow and nudged him gently in the direction of the other swaying couples, stopping just on the fringes of the dance floor.  
  
Buck looked down at his feet before finding Eddie’s eyes again. “How… how do you want to do this?”  
  
Eddie laughed, and suddenly the nerves gripping at his chest were easing away. Buck’s shoulders slumped in visible relief.  
  
“Here.” Eddie took Buck’s hand and placed it on his own shoulder, then took Buck’s other hand and put it on his hip. “Like this.” Eddie mirrored him, resting his palms against the smooth polyester of Buck’s suit jacket. He swayed gently from side to side.  
  
Buck smiled, copying the movement. “Am I doing this right?”  
  
“Yeah. You haven’t done this before?”  
  
“School dances probably don’t count, do they?”  
  
“Mm, probably not.”  
  
They were quiet for a moment. Buck’s smile twitched. “So, about what Christopher said…”  
  
“Right.” Eddie ducked his head. “I, uh, I don’t know what he… not that I…” He lifted his hand from Buck’s shoulder to scrub at his face. “I don’t know. I don’t know what to say. I don’t want to say something stupid and ruin everything and-”  
  
“You won’t.” Buck took Eddie’s hand and set it back on his shoulder. “Eddie, I just… look, I guess I’m just asking if you’re dancing with me because your son wanted you to dance with me, or if you’re dancing with me because _you_ want to, and _I_ don’t want to end up saying something stupid and embarrassing myself because I just…”  
  
“Like what?” Eddie asked quietly. “What would you say that would make you embarrass yourself?”  
  
Buck stared at the pattern on Eddie’s tie. “You first.”  
  
“Buck.”  
  
Buck closed his eyes wearily. “What was it Chris said?” He murmured. “You have to dance with who you love.”  
  
Eddie’s breath caught in his throat.  
  
“If you’re only dancing with me to make your son happy that’s fine with me.” Buck opened his eyes and held Eddie’s gaze with a steadiness that made Eddie’s chest hurt. “But I think it’s more than that to me and I… I should’ve told you weeks ago. But now you know. If you don’t want me to mention it ever again then I’ll respect that and we can go back to work on Monday and it’ll be exactly the same and it won’t make a difference but I-”  
  
Eddie kissed him.  
  
Buck’s words were still frozen on his tongue as Eddie pulled away. He blinked once, twice, pressing his lips together in disbelief.  
  
“It’s not just for him,” Eddie said softly.  
  
“Oh. I…” Buck gave an almost imperceptible shake of the head. “Oh.”  
  
Eddie started as a hand clapped him on the back. Now beside them, Chimney rolled his eyes.  
  
“Thanks guys. Now I owe Hen twenty dollars.”  
  
Buck furrowed his brow. “You were betting on if we’d…”  
  
“Not ‘if’, Buckaroo,” Chim scoffed. “When. Bobby was sure it’d be last month. If you’d waited three more weeks I’d have had it.” He went to leave, then turned back as an afterthought. “I’m happy for you, though. Glad you finally got there. We were waiting for you to work it out.”  
  
Buck watched Chimney head back to the table to dig his wallet out of his jacket. “Well,” he said slowly, “that’s on him. Hen always wins bets. He should know that by now.”  
  
Eddie laughed. “I kinda feel like Chris earned that twenty dollars, though.”  
  
“Yeah, I guess he did.” Buck grinned. “So are they your thing now?”  
  
“Is what my thing now?”  
  
“Parties,” Buck said. “You said you didn’t like them. You change your mind?”  
  
Eddie gave a crooked smile as he pretended to think it over. Then, at last, he nodded. “Yeah. I think I have.”


	2. Madney + Snow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Are you alright?” Chimney had asked, a comforting hand on her elbow. “If you’re not ready, if this is too much, we can leave right now. I can call Bobby and say it’s on me. I’ll tell him I’ve got some really gross stomach virus; nobody’s gonna question that.”  
Maddie had smiled, slipping her hand into his. “I’m alright. I want to be here. I want to do this.”  
Chimney lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “If you change your mind, just say the word and I’ll get us out of here. I’m a pretty good actor.”
> 
> Maddie has Christmas dinner at the firehouse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maddie deserves a nice Christmas, Chimney is a great boyfriend, and I want more Buckleys backstory so I write my own.
> 
> Written for Flufftober Prompt #2, 'Snow'.

There’d been a time when Maddie had thought she might never want to celebrate Christmas again. Last year even the idea of decorations in her house had made her skin crawl, the notion of turkey and presents and being expected to be happy when every bit of it filled her with dread enough to make her nauseous. Turning away Chimney when he’d shown up on her doorstep with a tree, seeing the pride in his eyes extinguish like a candle, his face falling as he realised his gift was less than welcome, Buck’s disappointment that she wasn’t the same person he’d known… it had just made her feel worse.  
  
But Buck had apologised. Given her space. Said he understood, and if she wasn’t ready, she wasn’t ready. And Chim had shown up at her door again, sans Christmas tree, with takeout and Die Hard, and that sort of Christmas she could do.  
  
It had been a year now, though. Doug was… he was gone. He couldn’t hurt her. And she was determined not to let the memory of him ruin another Christmas for her.  
  
“Are you alright?” Chimney had asked, a comforting hand on her elbow. “If you’re not ready, if this is too much, we can leave right now. I can call Bobby and say it’s on me. I’ll tell him I’ve got some really gross stomach virus; nobody’s gonna question that.”  
  
Maddie had smiled, slipping her hand into his. “I’m alright. I want to be here. I want to do this.”  
  
Chimney lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “If you change your mind, just say the word and I’ll get us out of here. I’m a pretty good actor.”  
  
She’d laughed. It was tempting, the thought of going back home with Chim and microwaving a box of popcorn and watching terrible movies on the couch. But no. She could do this.  
  
Christmas dinner at the firehouse. Her heart was pounding. Her breathing was shaky. But _she could do this_.  
  
She’d found a space next to Buck and squeezed his shoulder as she sat down, Chim taking the seat opposite her. She’d curled her hands into fists in her lap, her knuckles showing white as she took a slow, steadying breath. She focused on the hum of chatter around her. On the smell of the food in the air. Chimney smiled reassuringly, and as Bobby laid the food out in the middle of the table, as the remaining spaces were filled, she felt herself begin to relax.  
  
She could do this.  
  
And she did.  
  
She hadn’t had a Christmas dinner so good in… well, maybe ever. And a family gathering over the holidays? She couldn’t say when she’d last had that, either. But somehow there she was, and she was laughing and her heart wasn’t racing anymore and everything felt _right_.  
  
Buck grinned as he watched her adjust a Santa hat she didn’t remember putting on her head in the first place. “I’m really glad you came, Maddie.”  
  
She smiled. “I’m glad I came too.”  
  
Buck surveyed the faces at the table for a moment before continuing. “Do you ever miss Christmas at home?”  
  
“At home? Like with mom and dad?”  
  
Buck shrugged.  
  
“I don’t miss Christmas with them, not really. I used to miss Christmas with you, but..” she gestured to him, “you’re here. I guess the only thing I miss about it is-”  
  
“The snow?” Buck guessed, even as she said the words herself. She laughed.  
  
“Remember when you were little and you really wanted to build an igloo in the yard?”  
  
Buck gave a bemused frown. “No?”  
  
“You had a book about them. And then it snowed and you thought that was your shot at living in an igloo and you were _so_ excited. You waited by the door for me to get home from school so you could beg me to help you.”  
  
“And did you?”  
  
Maddie scoffed. “Of course I did. You were adorable and I was a great big sister. I still am.”  
  
Buck laughed.  
  
“Except the snow wasn’t great and there wasn’t enough of it in the yard so we ended up with this gross pile of slush,” Maddie drummed her fingers absently against the tabletop. “But by then we were freezing and you’d rethought living in an igloo without TV, so we gave up.”  
  
“That’s kinda disappointing.”  
  
“Maybe,” Maddie mused, “but that’s the sort of thing I missed after I moved out.”  
  
“Hey,” Chim moved around to the other side of the table, kissing Maddie’s cheek as he took the newly-vacated seat to her left. “You guys reminiscing?”  
  
“Does it count as reminiscing if he doesn’t remember it?” Maddie nudged Buck in the ribs. Buck rolled his eyes, but the grin tugging at the corners of his mouth took away any real exasperation.  
  
“I’m gonna go help wash up,” he said as he got up from the table. “I’ll leave you guys to it.”  
  
“So,” Chimney said, resting his hand over hers. “How’s Christmas going?”  
  
“Almost perfect,” she replied, leaning her head on his shoulder.  
  
“Only almost?”  
  
“Well,” she stroked her thumb against the palm of his hand, “it isn’t snowing.”  
  
“If you want snow, I’ll get you snow,” Chimney said simply, as if it were only a matter of clicking his fingers. “Whatever I have to do to make it perfect for you.”  
  
“Even you can’t make it snow in LA,” she breathed a laugh. “But it doesn’t matter. I’ve got you. That’s as perfect as anyone could ask for.”  
  
He kissed the top of her head in reply.  
  
It might not be snowing, but it didn’t matter. She had her friends. She had her brother. And she had Chimney; she had everything she could ever possibly need, right there with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! Kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Two prompts in one up next: 'blanket' and 'wet'.
> 
> If you want to say hi or leave a prompt, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	3. The Team + Blanket + Wet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team post-saving that guy with his head stuck in a microwave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always want more scenes of the team together, so here’s a really short tag to 2.01. Written for Flufftober prompts #3 ‘Blanket’ and #5 ‘Wet’.

Eddie shivered.  
  
“Yeah, that’s what happens when you jump into a swimming pool to save a guy with a microwave cemented to his head,” Hen shrugged, handing Eddie a blanket. He took it gratefully. “Just part of the job.”  
  
“But at least we looked cool,” Buck grinned from beside him. He shook his head, droplets of water flying from his wet hair.  
  
“You? Look cool?” Hen threw the second blanket at Buck; he caught it one-handed. “Let’s not go crazy.”  
  
Eddie snorted, towelling his hair dry before wrapping the blanket around himself. His uniform clung uncomfortably to his skin.  
  
“You’re just jealous we got to be action heroes and you didn’t,” Buck said.  
  
Hen raised an eyebrow. “Sure, Buck. You’re the one soaking wet, but I’m jealous of you. Mmhm. Absolutely.”  
  
“If you drip all over the truck Cap’ll be mad,” Chim warned. “And if you drip all over me _I’ll_ be mad.”  
  
“Yeah, keep to your side of the truck, boys.” Hen fixed them with a pointed look, then followed Chim back to the truck.  
  
Buck shook his head again.  
  
“You’re like a dog,” Eddie watched him carefully, leaning away.  
  
Buck tipped his head back, basking in the warmth of the sun. “Mm.” He glanced down briefly. “I think there’s water in my boots.”  
  
“You guys coming?” Bobby rapped his fist against the truck door. “Or are you gonna sit out here all day?”  
  
Eddie shivered again in the breeze. He stood, patting Buck on the shoulder. “Come on, action hero.”  
  
Buck beamed, pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders, and followed after him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos and comments are always appreciated if you enjoyed it!
> 
> Up next: Maddie & Chimney + candles.
> 
> If you want to say hi or leave a prompt, I’m over on Tumblr here!


	4. Madney + Candles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maddie and Chimney talk about candles and Christmases.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #4, ‘Candles’.

“Don’t they make you nervous?”  
  
“Hmm?”  
  
“You know,” Maddie gestured to the candle as she lit it, smiling as the wick caught the flame. “Candles are like, the number one cause of accidental house fires or something, right? It’s literally your job to have to deal with that.”  
  
Chimney set two glasses of wine on the coffee table and sat down on the couch. “Cooking appliances, heaters, electrical fires; all _way_ more common than candle fires. And besides,” he turned his head to grin at her, “if anything happens, I’d say I’m qualified to deal with it.”  
  
Maddie hummed thoughtfully as she sat down beside him, reaching for her glass and tucking her feet up underneath her. “Buck used to buy me candles for Christmas, when he was a kid.”  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“And by that I mean I used to buy them and give them to him to give to me, because he was six years old.”  
  
Chim snorted. “Right.” He paused for a moment, reaching to pick up his own glass for something to do. “How come your parents didn’t buy stuff for him to give to you?”  
  
Maddie sipped her wine. “It’s just not something they’d have ever thought to do. We weren’t that sort of family.” She tapped her nails absently against the side of the glass. “But he really wanted to get me something and I couldn’t let him down.”  
  
Chim slipped his hand into hers, rubbing his thumb gently over her knuckles. They watched the flame flickering in the jar, a soft orange illuminating Maddie’s living room, casting shadows on the wall behind them.  
  
“So should _I_ get you candles for Christmas?” Chim asked finally. He squinted at the label on the side of the jar. “One of those fancy ones with the scents that the companies make up and pretend is a real thing?”  
  
“They don’t make them up.” Maddie rolled her eyes.  
  
“Oh yeah? What about, like…” Chim shook his head, “‘Winter Log Cabin’? Does that sound like a real thing to you? Or ‘Cloudless Skies’? Or ‘Springtime Joy’? Or ‘Enchanted Night’?”  
  
“Those sound made up because you made them up.”  
  
“I bet I didn’t.”  
  
Maddie laughed. “Okay, sure. For Christmas you can get me ‘Enchanted Night’, but next year I’m expecting you to top it. I want ‘The North Pole’, or…”  
  
“‘Santa’s Reindeer’?” Chim offered.  
  
“Sure, I’d love a candle that smells like the zoo.”  
  
“Then I’ll get you that one in three Christmases’ time,” Chim promised, dropping her hand to press his own solemnly to his heart. “The only downside is you’ll have to stay with me that long to cash in all these gifts.”  
  
“You’re right.” Maddie nodded, tipping her head to the side as she pretended to weigh up the decision. “You know what? I think it’s worth it.”  
  
Maddie shuffled closer to him so she could rest her head on his shoulder; he rested his cheek against the top of her head, her hair tickling his skin.  
  
She planned to stay with him for years to come. Chim smiled; he’d stay with her for as long as she’d have him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated! 
> 
> If you want to say hi or leave a prompt, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	5. Buddie + Roadtrip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie and Buck can’t decide on a roadtrip destination, so they ask Christopher.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #6, ‘Roadtrip’.
> 
> (There’s a little bit of Spanish in this fic; I don’t know very much Spanish at all, so please let me know if it’s incorrect and I’ll fix it!)

“So where are we going?”  
  
“Where do you want to go?”  
  
Buck turned his head to look at Eddie with a bemused smile. “Isn’t the point of a roadtrip that there’s somewhere you need to get to?”  
  
Eddie rested a hand lightly on the steering wheel and screwed up his face in thought. “No,” he decided. “It doesn’t matter. What’s that saying? It’s not the destination that counts, it’s the journey?”  
  
“Sure,” Buck said, “but doesn’t that still mean that we need a destination?”  
  
“Which is why I asked you.” Eddie grinned and posed the question again. “Where do you want to go?”  
  
Buck looked at Christopher in the rearview mirror. “What do you think, buddy? Where should we go?”  
  
Christopher pressed a finger to his chin in thought. He narrowed his eyes as he searched through every place he could remember in his mind, his gaze drifting briefly to the world outside the car window. After a moment, he turned resolutely back to meet Buck’s eye again, lifted his chin, and said, “Brazil.”  
  
Buck blinked. “Brazil?”  
  
Eddie’s lips quirked into a smile. “They’re learning about South America at school.”  
  
“Ah.”  
  
“They speak Portuguese,” Christopher continued. “It’s a lot like Spanish. Y hablo español.”  
  
“Sí,” Eddie nodded. “Pero Buck? Él no habla español.”  
  
“I know a little,” Buck mumbled.  
  
“And besides,” Eddie looked over his shoulder, “Brazil is really really far away, buddy. _So_ far away. Thousands of miles.”  
  
“Thousands?” Christopher repeated, wide-eyed.  
  
“Thousands,” Eddie echoed. “Why don’t you pick somewhere closer?”  
  
Christopher thought for another moment. “Canada?”  
  
“Definitely closer,” Buck laughed. “But I don’t think your dad and I would make it back in time for our shift tomorrow if we drove all the way to Canada.”  
  
“Hmm.” Christopher rested his chin in his hand, clearly wearied by yet another dismissal of what he deemed a perfectly sensible road trip destination. He brightened suddenly. “Ice cream?”  
  
“Ice cream is a thing, buddy, not a place.”  
  
“Yeah,” Christopher said slowly, “but we can go somewhere _with_ ice cream.”  
  
“I like ice cream,” Buck shrugged, “and you were the one who said the destination wasn’t important.”  
  
“You want to go on a roadtrip for ice cream?” Eddie raised an eyebrow.  
  
Buck shrugged. “I don’t really care where we go. I just like being with you guys.”  
  
“Well then.” Eddie sighed emphatically as he turned the key in the ignition. “Looks like I’m outvoted.”  
  
“So we’re getting ice cream?” Christopher asked hopefully.  
  
“Yeah,” Eddie caught sight of Buck’s grin from the corner of his eye; he grinned back. “We’ll get ice cream.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Bathena + Second Kiss.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	6. Bathena + Second Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby and Athena's second kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #7, 'Second Kiss'.

Their second kiss was softer than their first.  
  
The first kiss had been awkward, clumsy, noses bumping together and cheeks blushing red like they were teenagers holding hands for the first time. It had been brief, Bobby leaning in for a goodnight kiss after he’d driven her home, parking at the top of the drive so the kids wouldn’t see them. He had replayed it over and over in his mind afterwards, cringing anew every time he remembered how poorly it had gone.  
  
Athena had kissed him, that second time. He’d stood up to meet her from the table at the restaurant, taken her hand and brushed his thumb gently along her knuckles. She hadn’t even thought about it. She’d leant forward, cupped his cheek with her other hand, and kissed him gently.  
  
“What was that for?” He’d asked as she pulled back, studying her face with wonder in his eyes.  
  
“Because I wanted to do it,” she’d replied. “Was it… was that okay?”  
  
Bobby had smiled, brought his hand up to her face, and kissed her again. He’d drawn back a little, still close enough that she could feel the tickle of his breath against her skin. “More than okay,” he’d murmured.  
  
“Good.” She took her hand from his face and rested it on his arm. “We should sit down before people start staring.”  
  
“I don’t care if they are.”  
  
Athena had laughed, kissed him again, and taken her seat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated! 
> 
> Next up: Maddie & Buck + Childhood.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	7. Buck & Maddie + Childhood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of the Buckley siblings; home from college for spring break, Maddie takes Buck to the park.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #8, ‘Childhood’.

Stretching his arms as far as they would go, he could almost brush his fingers against the grass. Well, maybe not _almost_. Maybe if he was half his height again he’d be able to touch the ground beneath him, but he wasn’t really there yet.  
  
“Evan, please be careful.”  
  
“I am being careful.” He regarded his sister with as much sincerity as he could muster while hanging upside-down from the top of the swing-set. “I never fall. I don’t even need to hold on, see?”  
  
“Yeah, I can see,” Maddie smiled weakly, “but maybe it’s time to get down now. We should go home.”  
  
“But it’s not even dark yet.”  
  
“No, but I’ve got a paper to write.”  
  
“You can’t have homework; it’s spring break.” Evan frowned, but he righted himself without further protest and dropped carefully to the ground.  
  
“College gives you homework even when you’re on vacation.”  
  
“That sucks.”  
  
“Yeah, it does.” Maddie laughed. “Never grow up, Evan.”  
  
“Nobody calls me Evan anymore. Except for mom and dad. Nobody at school calls me it, not even the teachers.”  
  
“No? Then what do they call you?”  
  
“Buck.”  
  
“Huh.” Maddie considered it. “How come?”  
  
Buck shrugged. “There’s another Evan in my class and Mrs Scott wanted to call me Evan B and him Evan S but I didn’t want to be Evan B. I don’t want to be another boring Evan.”  
  
“You’re not boring.” Maddie held his coat out for him to slip his arms into. “But I like Buck. It suits you.”  
  
Buck smiled shyly at her as he zipped his coat up. “Yeah?”  
  
“Yeah.” She ruffled his hair; he batted at her hand with a scowl. “It’s cute.”  
  
Buck was quiet for a moment. Then, slowly, he looked up at his sister. “Do you _really_ have to do homework on vacation or are you just saying that so I’ll go home?”  
  
“I really have homework. Enjoy the freedom of fourth grade while you can, Buck.”  
  
Buck nodded solemnly. Then, with a sly look at her out of the corner of his eye, he grinned. “Race you back?”  
  
Maddie considered it. She looked down at her little brother, feigned indifference, and then, slowly, replied. “On your marks, get set-”  
  
Buck was halfway up the street before she’d said go. She let him have his head start, rolled her eyes with a smile, and started after him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Up next: The Team + Pain (which sounds really angsty but isn't at all).
> 
> If you want to say hi or leave a prompt, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartghost.tumblr.com/)!


	8. The Team + Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck and Chimney compete to see who's had the most impressive injury.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #9, 'Pain'.
> 
> TW for mention of injuries.

Hen tilted her head to the side. “How’d you get that?”  
  
Buck looked down at his arm, twisting it so he could study the purple bruise there. “Building rockets with Chris. I leant on a Lego.”  
  
Hen winced. “Rookie mistake. Always know where all Lego bricks are at all times.”  
  
Buck was still focused on his bruise. “It hurts when I poke it.”  
  
“So don’t poke it,” came the chorus. Buck looked at Hen, Bobby, and Eddie in turn, then smirked.  
  
“You guys are such parents.”  
  
“That’s nothing.” Chimney lifted his arm to show an angry red scratch on his elbow. “Doorframe. Splinter.”  
  
Hen wrinkled her nose. “Gross.”  
  
“Stovetop.” Eddie held his thumb towards them for inspection, a circle of skin pink and shining.  
  
Chimney tapped a finger against his forehead. “Rebar. _Through my skull_.”  
  
“No,” Buck shook his head. “Old injuries don’t count.”  
  
“Yeah they do.”  
  
“Don’t.”  
  
“Do.”  
  
“Kids,” Bobby interrupted. “Play nice.”  
  
They ignored him.  
  
“Fine,” Buck said. “Crush injuries from a fire truck. I win.”  
  
“Mm, sorry Buckaroo. Metal rod through the brain beats a broken leg.”  
  
“Says who?”  
  
“Says me.”  
  
“Okay. Pulmonary embolism.”  
  
“Rebar.”  
  
“Literal tsunami.”  
  
“Through. My. Skull.”  
  
“Oh my God.” Hen held her head in her hands. “You’re both walking disasters with horrific medical histories. There. Does that make you both feel better?”  
  
They considered it.  
  
At last, Chim straightened. “I’m gonna call Maddie.”  
  
“Do it.”  
  
Hen sighed.  
  
The alarms began to blare overhead, loud and shrill and insistent.  
  
“Looks like that’ll have to wait.” Bobby looked pointedly at them both as he led the way down the stairs. The team followed after him.  
  
“But I definitely win,” Chim muttered.  
  
Buck scoffed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: The Team + Party. 
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	9. The Team + Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Maybe you should’ve just reused the one from my party. We could’ve crossed out my name and written ‘118’.”  
“Right, because nothing says ‘welcome back’ like the communal near-death-experience banner.” 
> 
> The 118 attempt to throw Buck a welcome back party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #10, ‘Party’. Ignores the lawsuit plotline; Buck just goes back to work when he’s ready.

“How many times is it now?” Chim frowned, tilting his head to the side as he regarded the banner stretched out on the table in front of them. “Is it two?”  
  
“I honestly can’t remember,” Hen said. “That’s why I made it a tally, so I could work it out after.”  
  
Painted in large blue letters, the words ‘WELCOME BACK’ took up most of the banner. Underneath, in smaller lettering written in black marker pen, were the words ‘BUCK’ and ‘DEATH’. Beside ‘DEATH’, a clear zero. Beside ‘BUCK’, there was only blank paper.  
  
“Maybe you should’ve just reused the one from my party. We could’ve crossed out my name and written ‘118’.”  
  
“Right, because nothing says ‘welcome back’ like the communal near-death-experience banner.”  
  
“Global warming, Hen. Save the planet. Reduce, reuse, recycle.”  
  
“I’ll recycle you in a minute.”  
  
“What does that even mean?”  
  
“Everybody gets their own not-dead banner,” Hen said firmly. “End of discussion. If you want to be helpful, work out how many times Buck’s almost died.”  
  
Bobby paused at the top of the stairs. “This sounds like a cheery conversation.”  
  
“The ladder truck,” Chimney thought aloud, counting it on his fingers. “Welcome back party number one-”  
  
“Right,” Hen said absently, still frowning at the banner. “Pulmonary embolism.”  
  
“The tsunami,” Chim continued. “Maybe like twice over for that?”  
  
“Mm, I’ll count it as one.” Hen marked three lines next to Buck’s name. “That’ll do, right?”  
  
Bobby came around the table to peer over Hen’s shoulder. “Is that a three or a one hundred and eleven?”  
  
“I mean, it’s Buck, so,” Chim shrugged. “We’re probably fine either way.”  
  
Bobby rubbed a hand against his forehead wordlessly.  
  
“Did you get the cake?” Hen asked, tracing over the letters in pen. Chimney glanced at Bobby; Bobby looked blankly back at him.  
  
“Uh,” Chimney rubbed the back of his neck. “Who are you talking to?”  
  
“_Chimney_.” Hen turned to stare at him, exasperated. “You had _one job_.”  
  
“Well, I forgot. He’ll be fine. He doesn’t need cake.”  
  
“Who doesn’t need cake?” Eddie leant over the table; he frowned. “Buck’s almost died a hundred and eleven times?”  
  
Hen pressed her hands together in silent prayer. She took a deep breath in, held it, and exhaled slowly through her nose.  
  
“Chim was supposed to get a cake,” Bobby supplied. “He forgot.”  
  
“Someone could’ve _reminded_ me.” Chim looked suspiciously from Eddie to Bobby. “Wait. Wasn’t somebody supposed to be keeping Buck busy?”  
  
Eddie paused. “Oh no.”  
  
Hen held her head in her hands.  
  
“It’s fine,” Chim said. “Buck’s never early. And hey, maybe if we call him we can ask him to pick up a cake on his way.”  
  
“Someone’s getting cake?”  
  
“No!” Hen stood up abruptly. “What are you doing here?”  
  
“Uh,” Buck blinked at her, “I work here?”  
  
“But why are you _early_?”  
  
“First day back,” he shrugged. The banner on the table caught his eye. “Is that for me?”  
  
“It was _meant_ to be. We’re not ready. Go away and come back later.”  
  
Buck’s lips twitched into a confused grin. He looked from Hen’s nearly-furious glare to the sheepish expressions on Eddie’s and Chimney’s faces, finally settling on Bobby’s bemused smile. “Is she… is she serious? I honestly can’t tell.”  
  
Bobby snorted, reached over and patted him on the back. “Welcome back, kid.”  
  
“Yeah, good to have you back, Buck.” Eddie rested a hand on his shoulder.  
  
“It’s good to be back.” He looked at the banner again and furrowed his brow. “Why does it say I’ve almost died a hundred and eleven times?”  
  
Hen threw the marker pen across the table.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Bathena + Hands.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	10. Bathena + Hands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby and Athena admire their wedding rings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #11, ‘Hands’.

Bobby can’t stop looking at it. He twists the gold band around his finger, watching it catch the light and scatter colours across the wooden floor of the firehouse kitchen. He hadn’t thought he’d ever wear a wedding ring again. He hadn’t thought anyone would ever love him like that again. But he was, and someone did.  
  
“You keep turning it like that, you’ll wear it out,” a voice teased. Bobby looked up and smiled.  
  
“Just keeping it polished.”  
  
“Mm, but only on the inside.” Athena crossed the room to him, taking hold of his hand so she could study the ring on his finger. “You’ll have to take it off if you want to polish the outside.”  
  
“But I don’t ever want to take it off.” He twined his fingers with hers and stroked his thumb against the back of her hand. Athena laughed.  
  
“Don’t think you can use that as an excuse to never have to wish the dishes.”  
  
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” He lifted her hand to his lips to kiss her knuckles.  
  
“Of course not.” She looked down at her own ring, untangling her fingers from his so she could compare them side by side. She hummed thoughtfully. “They still look good together, don’t they? No regrets?”  
  
“Not one.”  
  
“That’s lucky,” Athena said, “because you’re stuck with me forever. You ready to go?”  
  
“Yeah. I just need a minute.”  
  
“For what?”  
  
“To appreciate how lucky I am to have you.”  
  
Athena rolled her eyes fondly. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re unbearably adorable?”  
  
“Yes,” Bobby nodded, “you have.”  
  
“Well, as long as you know.” She took his hand again. “Let’s go home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Madney + Underwear.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	11. Madney + Underwear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chimney cooks Maddie breakfast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #12, ‘Underwear’.

The other side of the bed was empty when she woke up. The sheets were rumpled and the blankets carefully folded back, and when she reached her hand over, she could still feel the warmth there.  
  
It took her a moment to notice the sound of sizzling and the wafting smell of bacon coming from the kitchen.  
  
Maddie got out of bed, pulled on a cardigan, and stepped out of the bedroom.  
  
“Chim?”  
  
“Yeah,” he called back.  
  
She found him by the stove, prodding at the contents of a pan with a spatula. She smiled softly, eyes lingering on the muscles of his back.  
  
“I’m not sure cooking breakfast in your underwear is a smart idea.” She traced her fingers absently over the soft skin of his shoulder.  
  
“I mean, sure, I might get burnt.” He glanced at her and grinned. “But you can’t say I don’t look hot, right?”  
  
She laughed.  
  
“You’re supposed to say, ‘Chim, you’re the hottest guy I’ve ever seen’,” he prompted.  
  
“Chim, you’re the hottest guy I’ve ever seen.”  
  
“See, now I don’t believe you.”  
  
“Well, you are.” She kissed his cheek. “What can I help with?”  
  
“No, nothing. You sit.” He waved the spatula in the direction of the kitchen table. “I’ve got this.”  
  
“You sure?” She hovered by his side. “I could-“  
  
“You could sit,” Chim shooed her away. “Let me be a good boyfriend.”  
  
“You’re always a good boyfriend,” she said as she pulled a chair out from under the table, sitting down with an exaggerated sigh. She glanced at the clock on the wall. “Aren’t you supposed to be on shift?”  
  
“I’ve got a couple hours til then.” Chimney poked at the bacon again and smiled to himself. He slid the rashers onto a plate and set it down on the table between the already waiting plates of buttered toast and fried eggs. “Long enough to have breakfast with my girlfriend.”  
  
“In your underwear.”  
  
“In my underwear,” he confirmed. “Eat good food and look good doing it. That’s my motto.”  
  
“Mmhm.” Maddie helped herself to food. “And how many times in your life have you said that?”  
  
Chim sat down opposite her. “I mean… at least once.”  
  
“And was that once just now?”  
  
Chim ignored her in favour of shoving a forkful of bacon into his mouth. “This is really good,” he said with his mouth full. “Whoever the chef is did a great job.”  
  
Maddie laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: The Team + Popcorn.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	12. The Team + Popcorn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team have movie night at Athena & Bobby’s.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #13, ‘Popcorn’. Set before the start of season 3.

“You guys getting married is honestly the best thing that ever happened to us,” Hen said, stretching out her legs in front of her. “Bobby’s couch was _not_ big enough for three of us.”  
  
“Must be nice,” Eddie said from his spot on the floor. He leant back against the furniture and shifted on the cushion they’d begrudgingly sacrificed for him to sit on. “I wouldn’t know.”  
  
Hen shrugged, taking a handful of popcorn from the bowl resting on Chimney’s leg. “Don’t worry about it,” she said, mouth full, “soon as Buck’s fully better he can take his spot back and balance’ll be restored.”  
  
Buck’s lips twitched into a smile. His leg still ached a little, twinged uncomfortably on bad days, but it was nowhere near as bad as it was. Eddie was letting him milk it by not claiming seniority and relegating Buck back to the floor. They were trying to make it up to him that he still wasn’t cleared for active duty, and as much as it sucked, he might as well take what he could get. He’d be okay to take his recertification test in a couple weeks, his doctor said, and the moment he passed it he’d be back on the floor with someone’s knee in his back and there’d be no popcorn left by the time the bowl finally made its way to him. Getting recertified was the only thing he wanted, but until that happened, he was pretty comfy right where he was.  
  
“One of you guys could swap with me in the meantime,” Eddie looked pointedly over his shoulder at Hen and Chim. Hen only laughed.  
  
“Sorry, man,” Chim shrugged. “You’re still young. I sit on the floor, I might never get up again.”  
  
Bobby scoffed from where he sat on the loveseat with an arm curled around Athena. “Chim, how old do you think you are?”  
  
“Too old to sit on the floor,” Chim replied, reaching down to pat Eddie on the shoulder. Chim glanced at Buck, caught sight of his grin, and raised an eyebrow at him. “Don’t get comfy, Buckaroo; your couch days are numbered.”  
  
Buck sat back against the couch cushions. “I hope so.”  
  
Hen elbowed him gently in the ribs, picked up the bowl of popcorn and shook it at him. Buck took a handful.  
  
“Is anybody putting a movie on or have I just let you all into my house to squabble with each other?” Athena tucked her feet up onto the couch and leant into Bobby’s side. “Someone press play before we _do_ all get old.”  
  
Chim searched around for the remote control until he found it wedged between the couch cushions. He waved it triumphantly, pressed play, and reached over to reclaim the popcorn.  
  
Buck didn’t really care what film Chim’d put on. He didn’t really care if he got a seat on the couch, or if he got any of the popcorn. It was enough that his family hadn’t forgotten about him even when he couldn’t work, enough that they were there for him while he was down but let him know in no uncertain terms that he was going to get back up again.  
  
Buck threw a handful of popcorn into his mouth. He looked at Athena and Bobby nestled together, at Hen and Chim fighting over the bowl, at Eddie gradually leaning away from the couch, anticipating an upturned bowl and popcorn kernels finding their way down the back of his shirt.  
  
Buck smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	13. Buddie + Roommates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie and Christopher ask Buck to move in with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #14, ‘Roommates’.

Buck grinned at the piece of paper in his hands. “He drew this for me?”  
  
“You’re his Buck; of course he drew it for you,” Eddie smiled, leaning against Buck so he could study the drawing for himself.  
  
“Is this me and him?” A taller figure wearing a helmet stood beside a small figure with bright red glasses, both with grins wide enough to almost touch their eyes. Although, looking at the happiness on Buck’s face, Eddie thought it was a pretty accurate representation. “And this is you,” he nodded at the figure on the other side of the smallest one. “And in the sky, that’s a…”  
  
“A dragon,” Eddie nodded. “That’s his new thing.”  
  
“Okay.” Buck held the picture up to the light so he could appreciate it. Faint shapes shone through the paper, curling lines covering the faces of the stick figures. Buck frowned. “Is there writing on the back of this?”  
  
“Turn it over,” Eddie prompted. Buck glanced at him, then, slowly, as if the paper might bite him, he turned it over.  
  
Buck stared at the words in front of him.  
  
“Well,” Eddie said after a moment. He watched Buck’s expression, looking for some sign of what he was thinking, but for once Buck was unreadable. “What do you think?”  
  
Buck blinked. “I… what is this?”  
  
“Well, what does it say?”  
  
Buck cleared his throat. “Will you move in with me and my dad?”  
  
Eddie tried not to let his face betray how fast his heart was beating in his chest. “So… will you?”  
  
“I… Is this…” Buck set the paper down in his lap. “You guys need a roommate? I thought you were okay for money? I can call Carla again, I’m sure she’d be happy to help you work something out without needing to-”  
  
“Buck,” Eddie interrupted him. Buck fell silent. “We’re not asking you to move in because we need someone to help with the rent.” Eddie tried unsuccessfully to bite back a smile.  
  
Buck looked blankly at him. Then, after a moment, it dawned on him. “Oh.”  
  
“Mm,” Eddie nodded. “So?”  
  
Carefully, Buck folded the piece of paper, slipped it into his pocket and stood up. “I’ll be back later.”  
  
“You’re leaving?” Eddie followed him to the front door.  
  
“There’s something I’ve gotta do.”  
  
“But dinner-”  
  
“I’ll be back for dinner,” Buck promised. “I just… Tell Christopher I’ll see him then. I’m coming back.”  
  
Eddie stood in the doorway and watched Buck’s car reverse out of the driveway, back onto the street, and drive out of sight.  
  


*

It was almost two hours later when Eddie heard the knock at the door. He forced himself not to run to answer it, resting a hand against the wall as he finally opened it for Buck.

“Where did you go?” Eddie asked, watching as Buck took the drawing from his pocket and unfolded it. No, that wasn’t Christopher’s drawing. It was drawn in pencil rather than crayon, and the people looked a little more like people actually did. Buck handed it to him.

“I couldn’t really get the dragon right,” he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’ll have to get Chris to teach me how to draw them.”

Eddie breathed a laugh as he considered every detail of the drawing. “This is what you had to do?”

“I had to give you my answer,” Buck replied. Eddie paused. Holding the paper up, he could see the words on the other side, written in Buck’s handwriting.

Eddie swallowed.

“Turn it over,” Buck smiled.

Eddie did.

_I’d love to._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Buddie + Kittens.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	14. Buddie + Kittens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck rescues a cat from a tree; Eddie gains a few grey hairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober Prompt #15, ‘Kittens’.

“You’re really perpetuating the stereotype here, Buck.” Eddie crossed his arms over his chest, craning his neck to watch what was unfolding above him. “I don’t think firefighters actually do this.”  
  
“Of course we do.” Buck reached to grab a higher branch, swinging himself up. “It’s like part of the job description.”  
  
“You’re not even on duty.”  
  
“Ah, see, that’s where you’re wrong.” Buck peered down beneath his feet, grinning. “We’re always on duty.”  
  
Eddie sighed. “Just don’t fall, alright?” He glanced at his son, beaming and wide-eyed beside him. “Don’t ever copy what Buck’s doing, okay buddy? It’s dangerous; I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”  
  
“But it’s not dangerous for Buck,” Christopher said, gazing up at his hero, “because he’s a firefighter.”  
  
_It might be dangerous for Buck if Bobby finds out he climbed twenty feet without a harness_, Eddie thought, but he smiled weakly for Christopher’s sake and nodded. “That’s right. Buck knows what he’s doing. And besides,” he raised his voice loud enough to carry, “he’s coming straight back down in a second, aren’t you, Buck?”  
  
Buck didn’t seem to have heard the question. He frowned in concentration as he side-stepped through the branches to the other side of the tree, testing the lower ones carefully before putting his weight on them. Fingers curled tightly around the bark, he grinned down at Eddie and Christopher again.  
  
_I’m going to go grey_, Eddie thought, _and it’ll be his fault_. “Buck,” he called again, forcing a calmness into his voice for his son’s sake, “come on; let’s go get ice cream.”  
  
“Ice cream!” Christopher echoed. “Come on, Buck!”  
  
“Just coming, buddy!” Buck adjusted his hold on the higher branch, stepped cautiously along the lower, and held his hand out to the creature watching him. He clicked his tongue. “Hey, you’re okay. I’m here now. Do you want to get down?”  
  
The cat meowed softly at him.  
  
“That sounds like a yes to me.” Buck stroked the top of its head, tickled under its chin, felt it begin to purr beneath his hand. He picked up the cat, tucked it under his arm, and slowly made his way back down to solid ground.  
  
Buck dropped down from the lowest branch and set the cat on its feet; it regarded him for a moment, sniffed the air, and bolted.  
  
“You’re welcome,” he called after it.  
  
“Buck!” Christopher threw his arms around Buck’s waist. “You saved the cat!”  
  
“Yeah,” Buck mused, meeting Eddie’s eye with a sheepish grin. “Not sure it really appreciated it, though.”  
  
“Sure it did,” Eddie shook his head dismissively, returning Buck’s gaze. “I’m sure it appreciated you climbing all the way up there to rescue it without any safety equipment.”  
  
Buck feigned innocence. “Did I hear someone say something about ice cream?”  
  
“Dad did!” Christopher finally released Buck, turning to Eddie instead. “Can we go now?”  
  
Eddie pretended to consider it. “I think we’ll have to ask Buck if there are any more cats he’d like to save from trees first.”  
  
“We’re okay for now,” Buck said. “But obviously if that changes I’ll have to get back to you.”  
  
“Mmhm.” Eddie rolled his eyes fondly. “Alright, buddy. We can go get ice cream.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Madney + Promises.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	15. Madney + Promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chimney proposes to Maddie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #16, ‘Promises’.

He’d planned something bigger at first. He’d considered a romantic dinner in a fancy restaurant, a sunset walk by the ocean, a moonlit picnic underneath the stars. He’d thought about hanging a banner off the side of the firetruck, showing up at her door with flowers, maybe even surprising her mid-karaoke. He’d watched God knew how many rom-coms, gone through page after page of potential ideas, run them past Bobby, past Hen, and, even in a moment of true desperation, past Buck.  
  
“I’m going to ask your sister to marry me,” he’d said. “I’m not asking for your blessing or anything. I’m just telling you. You know, as a formality.”  
  
Buck had been quiet. Then, after a moment, he’d grinned. “You know if she says yes that’ll make you my brother-in-law, right?”  
  
“I love her enough to live with that.”  
  
“Good.” Buck nodded. “And look, I know you don’t need my blessing or whatever, but you’ve got it. You’re a good guy, Chim. Maddie deserves someone like you.”  
  
Chim smiled. “Thanks, Buckaroo. But listen, I need you to help me out here. How do I do this? How do I ask her to spend forever with me?”  
  
“You don’t need my help for that, man,” Buck had clapped him on the shoulder. “You and her, you understand each other. You know what she’d want. You’ve got this.”  
  
It had seemed like useless advice at the time, but maybe Buck was wiser than he let on.  
  
It wasn’t sunset at the beach, in the end. It wasn’t a three course meal in a restaurant he couldn’t really afford. It wasn’t a grand public gesture to put a Netflix Christmas movie to shame. It was just another evening on the couch in front of the TV, a rerun of an old episode of a home renovation show, her head resting on his shoulder.  
  
“You know I love you, right?” He said.  
  
“Mm,” she hummed. “I love you too.”  
  
“And you know I’d do anything for you. You know my life is a million times better with you in it.”  
  
She hummed again. “Me too. What’s this about?”  
  
“Marry me?”  
  
Maddie sat up.  
  
“I haven’t even bought a ring,” Chim admitted. “I thought I should plan this whole thing, maybe get fireworks or a flash mob or one of those celebrity lookalikes from Hollywood Boulevard, but… that’s not right. That’s not you. That’s not us. I love you and that’s all there is to it.”  
  
“Chim-”  
  
“I promise I’ll work every day to be the man you deserve. I’ll never get there because you deserve the world, but I’ll try so hard to get as close to it as I can.”  
  
“Chimney-”  
  
“I promise I will love you until the end of time and then a little longer again. I promise to make you breakfast and record your favourite shows and always make sure we have a box of that awful tea you like. I promise I will spend the rest of my life trying to make yours as near to perfect as humanly possible. I promise-”  
  
“Howard Han.” She pressed her index finger to his lips to stop him. She smiled. “The tea I like isn’t awful.”  
  
“Is too.”  
  
“You’ll get used to it.”  
  
He started to laugh. Then, as her words sunk in, he paused. “Wait. You mean-“  
  
“Yes.” She moved her finger from his lips and took his hand. “Yes, Chimney, I’ll marry you.”  
  
He couldn’t remember how to speak. He couldn’t find the words for the happiness spreading though his chest. But he didn’t need words to show how much he loved her.  
  
He blinked away the blurriness clouding his eyes, grinned, and kissed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: The Team + Chess.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	16. The Team + Chess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck hates chess. The fact that he never wins is unrelated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober Prompt #17, ‘Chess’.

Buck sat back with a frown. “I don’t like this game.”  
  
“You only don’t like it because you suck at it.” Hen smiled smugly, reaching to knock over his king. “Checkmate, Buckaroo.”  
  
“It doesn’t make sense.”  
  
“Of course it makes sense. It has rules and everything.”  
  
“Why would anybody attack like that? What real army’s gonna move one soldier three feet forwards and then wait for the enemy to move one soldier three feet forwards and then move their horse in a weird shape? And why would there be a bishop there? And why is he only going diagonal?” Buck crossed his arms over his chest and resisted the urge to tip the board up.  
  
“Their knight,” Bobby corrected.  
  
“What?”  
  
“It’s not a horse. It’s a knight.”  
  
“I kinda agree with him about the bishops though,” Chim admitted. “What _are_ they doing there?”  
  
Buck waved a hand in Chimney’s direction. ‘See?”  
  
“Whatever,” Hen dismissed them both with a shake of her head. “You’re both just bitter because you never win.”  
  
Buck stuck his tongue out at her.  
  
“Wow, that’s really mature.”  
  
“Set it up again, Hen.” Bobby took the seat next to Buck; Buck shifted over to make room for him.  
  
“You think you can beat me, Cap?” She raised an eyebrow as she placed the pieces back into their squares on the board. Bobby shrugged.  
  
“I think I’m fairer competition that someone who thinks the knight is called the horse.”  
  
“I’m sat right here,” Buck said with mock affront. Bobby grinned crookedly.  
  
“Ten on Cap,” Chim said from his spot by the railings. Leaning against the kitchen counter, Eddie scoffed.  
  
“Only ten? Come on, Chim. Step it up.”  
  
“Fine. Twenty.”  
  
“Twenty on Hen,” Buck added. Bobby stopped setting up his own pieces to tilt his head questioningly in Buck’s direction. Buck smiled innocently back.  
  
“Ten on Buck being fired in the next twenty minutes,” Chim offered instead. Eddie considered it.  
  
“Alright, everybody shut up.” Hen set her final piece down in its place. “Bobby, you know I love you, but I hope you’re ready to be humiliated in front of your team.”  
  
“We’ll see,” Bobby sat back in his chair. “Your move.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Buddie + Pranks.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	17. Buddie + Pranks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck and Christopher prank Eddie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober Prompt #18, ‘Pranks’.

There was nobody in the living room when Eddie got home. Buck’s car was in the driveway and the front door was unlocked, but the lights were switched off and the house was suspiciously quiet.  
  
“Hello?”  
  
Silence.  
  
Eddie stepped further into the house. Then, abruptly, he paused. He looked back at the living room and caught sight of the television.  
  
Every inch of the screen had been covered over with perfectly straight lines of post-it notes. On every single one, drawn in what looked like black marker pen, was a smiley face.  
  
Eddie gaped at it in bemusement. Then, as he turned away, he noticed the others. Stuck along the side of a bookcase. Lining the edge of the dining table. Forming a square frame around the light switches.  
  
Eddie wandered into the kitchen. The refrigerator was plastered with the same yellow notes, smiley faces grinning at him from every one of them. The bottom third of each kitchen cabinet was covered. A single mug he’d left by the sink before he’d left for work had been rinsed, filled with hot coffee, and had a single smiling sticky note stuck to the side. Eddie cleared his throat to keep the grin from his own face.  
  
“Hello?” He called again.  
  
This time, he heard something. There was the muffled sound of familiar giggling, and another familiar voice shushing the first. The kitchen door had been open when he’d come in, he realised, and it hadn’t been pushed back all the way against the wall. Eddie pretended not to notice.  
  
“Christopher? Buck?”  
  
More giggling. More shushing.  
  
“I wonder where they could be,” Eddie sat down and took a sip of coffee; he peeled the sticky note off the side of the mug and stuck it down on the table. “Maybe I’ll be here on my own forever.”  
  
The kitchen door swung back, and Christopher emerged with his arms raised high above his head, making a noise somewhere between a roar and a laugh. Buck was pressed against the wall, grinning sheepishly.  
  
“There you are!” Eddie put the mug down and stood, just in time to catch Christopher as he flung himself into his dad’s arms.  
  
“Did you see our prank?” Christopher asked into Eddie’s chest.  
  
“Yeah, I did.” Eddie raised his eyebrows at Buck over the top of Christopher’s head; Buck pretended to study a spider on the ceiling. “How long did that take you?”  
  
“Hours and hours and hours,” Christopher said as Eddie set him down again. “I drew all the faces. Buck stuck them all on.”  
  
“Did he?” Again, Buck pretended not to notice Eddie looking at him. “Did you have fun?”  
  
“Yeah,” Christopher beamed. “Was it a good prank?”  
  
“It was a great prank,” Eddie assured him. “Good job, buddy. Why don’t you go wash up and we’ll go out for dinner, alright?”  
  
“Can Buck come?”  
  
“Of course he can.” Buck finally looked at him, trying to conceal a guilty smile. “Go on, off you go.”  
  
Eddie waited for Christopher to leave the room before he spoke again, attempting to keep the laughter from his voice. “You stuck them on, huh?”  
  
“He masterminded the operation,” Buck said. “I’m just the labourer.”  
  
“Right,” Eddie snorted a laugh. “Well, I hope all that hard work made you hungry, because it looks like you’re coming to dinner.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Bobby & Buck + Cooking.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	18. Buck & Bobby + Cooking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby teaches Buck to cook. Set pre-season 1.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #19, ‘Cooking’.
> 
> (Note: Much like Buck in this fic, I know nothing about cooking. I tried my best.)

He’d been at the 118 for three months before Bobby cornered him in the kitchen.  
  
At first he thought he’d done something wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time; sometimes he let his mouth run ahead of his brain, or he rushed in too soon on calls, or he stepped on people’s toes without meaning to, and Bobby’d already pulled him aside a handful of times and told him to think things through a little before diving headfirst into everything.  
  
“Hey, Cap,” he said, smiling hesitantly. “What did I do this time?”  
  
“Nothing, as far as I know.” Bobby looked at him carefully. “Why, _have_ you done something?”  
  
Buck shrugged. “I don’t know.”  
  
“Right.” Bobby considered him for a moment before continuing. “No. To my knowledge, you haven’t done anything this time. Buck, do you know how to cook?”  
  
“Sure,” Buck replied immediately.  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“Yeah,” he nodded. “I mean, I can take things out of the freezer and put them on. And I can make toast. And eggs sometimes, but there’s like a 70% chance of them going wrong.”  
  
Bobby opened his mouth, paused, and closed it again. He sighed. “So, what you actually meant was ‘no’.”  
  
“I said I can do toast!”  
  
“Putting bread in a toaster is not cooking. Fill a pan and boil the water. We’re making spaghetti.”  
  
“Why?”  
  
“Because it’s lunch time?”  
  
“No,” Buck frowned. “Why do you want me to cook so badly?”  
  
“Because I worry about you,” Bobby said. “And I’d like to know that on the days you’re not at the firehouse, you’re still eating real food.”  
  
“Oh.” Buck wasn’t really sure why there was suddenly a lump in his throat. He coughed to clear it.  
  
“Fill a pan,” Bobby repeated gently, placing a hand on Buck’s shoulder to steer him over to the right cabinet, “and boil the water on the stove.”  
  
Buck did as he was told.  
  
“Now take this,” Bobby handed him another pan, “and take the ground beef out of the refrigerator. Break it up and brown it off.”  
  
“Yes boss.” Buck took it out of the refrigerator, opened the packet and stared at it. “Uh, how do I-”  
  
“In the pan, on the stove.”  
  
“Right. Got it.”  
  
“You making the new kid do all the hard work, Cap?” Hen sat on the edge of the dining table behind them and folded her arms. “What did he do to deserve it?”  
  
“That’s really funny,” Buck said absently, turning the beef over in the pan with a wooden spoon. “Am I doing this right?”  
  
“Yep. Good job.” Bobby smiled, stepping around Buck to get to the refrigerator. “I should probably show you how to make the sauce from scratch eventually, but…” he pulled a plastic tub out of the refrigerator and waved it triumphantly. “Drain the meat, then put it in with the sauce and let it simmer.”  
  
Hen watched Buck with a half-smile as he diligently followed Bobby’s orders. Catching her eye, Bobby stepped back to stand beside her.  
  
“Bobby, are you adopting him?” She teased. Bobby rolled his eyes.  
  
“He thought making toast was cooking, Hen. I’m just trying to keep him alive so he reaches thirty, at least.”  
  
There was a clatter as Buck dropped the now-empty pan into the sink; he smiled sheepishly at them over his shoulder.  
  
“Baby steps, Cap. Let’s get him to twenty-seven first.”  
  
“He’s doing well.”  
  
“Mm, you must be so proud of your son.”  
  
Bobby sighed.  
  
Buck stirred the sauce. “What do I do now?”  
  
“You still have that water boiling?”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
“Then you put the spaghetti on. Cabinet on the left above your head.”  
  
Buck took the packet out and looked at it carefully. “How much do I put on?”  
  
“All of it,” Hen said. “Go mad.”  
  
Buck looked at Bobby; Bobby shrugged. “Sure, go for it.”  
  
“Okay.”  
  
“Look how focused he is,” Hen murmured. “It’s so weird.”  
  
“I’m not the one watching some guy put spaghetti into a pot,” Buck said.  
  
Hen snorted. “That’s fair.” She got to her feet. “I’ll leave you boys to it, then. Good luck, Buck.”  
  
“Let’s see how you’re doing.” Bobby moved back to the stove and peered carefully at the simmering pans. Buck watched him out of the corner of his eye. “Hm.”  
  
“Hm?” Buck repeated. “Is that a good sign?”  
  
“Yeah.” Bobby nodded. “Nice work, kid.”  
  
Buck smirked. “Thanks, pops.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: The Team + Future.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	19. Bathena & The Team + Future

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby and Athena introduce the team to their baby daughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for this prompt from klutzy_girl: "Bathena + their surprise baby and the whole team coming over for the first meeting" and Flufftober prompt #20, 'Future'. Thank you so much for your prompt! I had such a lovely time writing it; this has ended up being one of my favourites so far. I hope you like it!
> 
> Set, as the prompt suggests, a few years into the future.

“Guys,” Hen cooed, beaming as a tiny hand closed around her index finger, “you did such a good job.”

“Okay, quit hogging her. You’ve got two at home.” Chim took the baby from Hen and held it to his chest.

“But neither of mine are this little,” Hen pouted.

“That’s not my fault.”

“Don’t you wake her up,” Athena pointed a warning finger at the two of them, “or we’ll call you both back here when she wakes up at 3AM because you’ve thrown off her sleeping schedule.”

Hen scoffed. “Athena, she’s three days old. You don’t need me to tell you she doesn’t have a sleeping schedule.”

“Maybe she’s just a prodigy,” Bobby offered.

“Mm,” Athena agreed, “great genetics. It was bound to happen.”

Bobby glanced down as his phone buzzed in his hand. “Buck’s outside.”

“Why didn’t he just knock?” Chim bounced the baby gently on the spot. “Is it a millennial thing?”

“He didn’t want to wake the baby.” Bobby weaved his way past them and headed for the door.

“I knew that boy was my favourite,” Athena sat down on the couch and sank back into the cushions. Hen looked at her in disbelief.

Two sets of footsteps headed back through the house towards them.

“Buck, meet Charlotte,” Bobby said, his lips twitching into a proud smile. “Charlotte, meet Buck.”

Buck grinned. “She’s adorable. Congrats, guys.”

“Chimney,” Athena kicked her legs out in front of her, “let my favourite have a turn.”

Chim begrudgingly turned to hold Charlotte out to Buck; at the same moment, Buck took a step back, palms raised in front of him.

“Oh, no, that’s okay,” he insisted.

Chim raised an eyebrow. “She’s a baby, Buck. She won’t bite you. She doesn’t have any teeth.”

“No, I know. It’s okay. I don’t want to drop her.”

Bobby frowned at him in bemusement. “I’ve seen you carry dozens of babies and you never dropped them.”

“Yeah, but this is _your_ baby.”

Athena snorted and met Hen’s eye again. _My favourite_, she mouthed. Hen rolled her eyes.

“Come here.” Bobby took his daughter from Chim’s arms and held her out to Buck.

“Bobby, seriously, I-”

Bobby placed Charlotte in Buck’s arms; Buck took her instinctively.

“There,” Bobby stepped back. “See? You won’t drop her.”

Buck stood deathly still, cradling the baby in his arms as if she might break if he so much as breathed.

Charlotte opened her eyes. She reached up a chubby arm, flexing her tiny fingers, and gazed in wonder at the face above her.

Buck grinned. “Hi there.”

Charlotte regarded him curiously.

Buck swayed a little on the spot, rocking her from side to side. “She looks like both of you.”

“It’s almost like they’re her parents or something,” Chim deadpanned. Buck didn’t seem to have heard him.

“Hi,” he said again, softly.

Bobby sat beside Athena on the couch and took her hand.

“You alright?” She murmured.

He kissed her knuckles. “Never better.”

“That all went pretty well, didn’t it?”

“What did?”

“Introducing Charlotte to the last of the kids,” Athena teased.

Bobby looked across at the adoration in Buck’s eyes and laughed.

He didn’t correct her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> I made a throwaway reference to Hen and Karen having a second kid, because they want a second baby and I want them to be happy.
> 
> Next up: Eddie + Friends to Lovers.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	20. Eddie + Friends to Lovers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie comes to a realisation about Buck, with a little help from Chimney.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #21, ‘Friends to Lovers’.

“I keep telling him I don’t blame him for any of it but it doesn’t make a difference, you know? He thinks it’s his fault that there was a _tsunami_. He could’ve killed himself keeping Christopher safe and whenever I try to tell him how grateful I am he just clams up and apologises again and again for losing him and it’s like…” Eddie gestured wildly at the air in front of him. “How am I supposed to make him see how incredible he is when he beats himself up every time I mention it?”  
  
Chim set his glass down on the bar. “I don’t know what to tell you, man.”  
  
Eddie sighed. “Sorry. What… what was the question?”  
  
Chim gave a small smile. “I asked if Buck was watching Christopher tonight.”  
  
“Right,” Eddie nodded. “Right. Yeah. Sorry.”  
  
“Don’t worry about it.” Chim watched Eddie sip his drink. “So when are you gonna talk to him?”  
  
“I just told you he won’t listen to me-“  
  
“Not about that,” Chim interrupted. “When are you gonna talk to him about how you feel?”  
  
“What do you mean?”  
  
Chim held back a sigh. “You know what I mean, Eddie.”  
  
Eddie tipped up his glass to finish the last of his scotch. “I really don’t.”  
  
“When are you going to tell Buck that you’re in love with him?”  
  
Eddie choked on his drink. He gave a startled laugh and shook his head. “I’m not in love with Buck. He’s my friend. My _best_ friend, sure, but that’s all it is.”  
  
Chim hummed skeptically.  
  
“I just care about him a lot. That’s what friends _do_. I care about the rest of the team exactly the same.”  
  
“Sure.”  
  
“Did it kill me to see him trapped under that firetruck and not be able to get to him? Absolutely. Does it make me happier than I’ve been in months to see how excited Christopher is to get to spend the day with him? Of course it does. Does it tear me up when I show up for a shift at the firehouse and I forget for a second he isn’t there and then I see his empty locker and the tape over his name and I remember? It does, every single time. But I-” Eddie broke off suddenly. There was a faraway look in his eyes as he stared off somewhere into the middle distance, his hands flat against the bartop.  
  
Chim frowned at him. “Uh… Eddie?”  
  
Eddie blinked back into himself. He cleared his throat, and Chim watched as his lips moved silently, trying unsuccessfully to find the words. “I, uh,” he said at last, “I think I’m in love with Buck.”  
  
Chimney caught the bartender’s eye and raised a hand. “Two more, please.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Hen/Karen (I don't know their ship name!) + Home.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	21. Hen/Karen + Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hen just wants to hear Karen’s voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #22, ‘Home’.

Hen pressed the phone to her ear and waited. Over the ringing sound of the call trying to connect she could hear distant voices from inside the firehouse, too far away for her to make out the words, but just close enough to be familiar. In front of the House, a car slowed to wait at a stoplight, the engine rumbling low as it idled.  
  
The call connected. “Babe? You okay?”  
  
“Hey, I’m fine, don’t worry. Just wanted to hear your voice.”  
  
On the other end of the line, Karen audibly sighed with relief. “I thought that maybe…” She trailed off.  
  
“Nope,” Hen filled the silence. She wandered out of the shade of the building and found a spot in the sunshine. “I’m completely fine. We’re all fine. Bobby’s making lunch.”  
  
“What’s he cooking?”  
  
“I don’t know. I like it to be a surprise sometimes.”  
  
“You think he does the cooking at home too? Athena’s a lucky woman.”  
  
“They’re both lucky.” Hen smiled. “What are you up to? Did you sort that box of junk in the office like you wanted?”  
  
“If by sorting it you mean ‘did I throw away three things before Denny convinced me we should make cupcakes instead’, then yes.”  
  
Hen laughed. “I thought I was the soft touch.”  
  
“Well, it’s harder to say no to him when he says he wants to make something nice for his momma to come home to.”  
  
Hen pressed a hand to her heart. “How did _we_ get so lucky?”  
  
“Honestly, I’m not gonna question it.”  
  
“Yeah, that’s probably best.” Hen tipped her head back to study the blue of the sky above her. “Listen, how about I get Bobby to let me leave a little early, I grab us some pizza on the way home, we let little man pick the movie and we have those cupcakes, huh?”  
  
“I think that sounds perfect.”  
  
“Then I’ll see you later. I should get back; I love you both.”  
  
“We love you too. Come home safe.”  
  
“There’s nothing on Earth that’d stop me coming home to you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> I was kinda nervous about writing this; I love Hen and Karen but I don't feel like I have as much of a feel for Karen's character as I do for the others and I was really worried I'd try and write them and mess it up, but I think it went okay?
> 
> Next up: Bathena + Letters.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	22. Bathena + Letters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When work gets too hectic to spend time together, Bobby and Athena leave each other notes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #23, 'Letters'.

Bobby leaves the first note.  
  
He’s up before dawn for an early shift, the night sky still pitch black as he finds his way to the bathroom in the dark so he won’t wake Athena. He showers, dresses, turns off the lights before he opens the door again so that the brightness won’t disturb the house. He runs his hand along the wall to guide him as he goes down the stairs, the route still a little unfamiliar to him even now. He moved in nearly a month ago, visited who knew how many times before that, but he still isn’t quite used to the house in darkness.  
  
He doesn’t turn the main light on once he reaches the kitchen; the little light over the counter is enough. He cooks in the dim glow, boxes the food up, writes a note and leaves it under a magnet on the refrigerator. He smiles to himself, finds his car keys, switches off the light again, and leaves for work.  
  
Athena wakes up a little after sunrise. She reaches over to pat the empty side of the bed fondly, pulls on her robe, and meanders down to the kitchen for a much-needed cup of coffee. It takes her a moment to notice the note.  
  
_Made lunch. Left it on the top shelf. Have a good shift._  
  
Athena takes the Tupperware box out of the refrigerator and puts it in her bag. She hesitates. Then, with a smile she doesn’t even register, she takes the note down, folds it, and puts that in her bag too.  
  
She leaves the next note.  
  
Work is hectic. It doesn’t feel like they’ve had more than twenty minutes together at a time in the last week, Athena stopping by the firehouse on her breaks long enough for a coffee and a kiss hello before her radio buzzes or the bells ring, calling them apart again.  
  
She’s supposed to have the morning with Bobby before he goes in at noon, but a half dozen officers call in sick with some new bug going round, and they’re asking her to come in and help make up the numbers.  
  
Bobby is still asleep. She lies on her side and watches the rise and fall of his chest, listens to the steady sound of his breathing; she can’t bear to wake him.  
  
She writes him a note, leaves it on the pillow beside him, brushes her thumb against his cheek and closes the bedroom door behind her.  
  
Bobby opens his eyes as he feels the crinkled texture of the paper against his skin. He sits up, still bleary-eyed, and holds the note to the light filtering in through the curtains.  
  
_Called in last minute. I’ll stop by on my break. Be safe._  
  
Bobby tucks the note into his pants pocket before he leaves for work. He sticks it on the inside of his locker door and traces the curves of her handwriting before he closes it again.  
  
It becomes routine, whenever things get busy and they find themselves passing like ships in the night. The notes are never long, never anything that couldn’t be said in a text, but there’s something about it that means more than any message on a phone screen ever could.  
  
_It’s a little cold; don’t forget your jacket._  
  
_I finish at 7 - I’ll book us a table at that Greek restaurant you like._  
  
_Be careful out there._  
  
Bobby is sleeping off a late shift when she finds another note stuck to her car one morning, tucked into the wing mirror to protect it from being carried away by the breeze. It’s the shortest one yet, three words that barely take up a line of the paper, his letters small and concise as always.  
  
_I love you._  
  
She takes a piece of paper out of her purse, writes him a reply, and folds it under the windscreen wipers on his windshield.  
  
Bobby’s almost forgotten the note he left her by the time he goes to his car ready for his next shift. A piece of paper catches his eye and he pauses, watching the way it curls in the wind before brushing aside the leaves that have fallen beside it. He takes the note, climbs into the front seat, and opens it up.  
  
He hums a laugh.  
  
_I love you too._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: The Team + Photography.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	23. The Team + Photography

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Team react to Chimney's spot in the 'Hot Firefighter Calendar'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #24, 'Photography'.

“Hey, Chimney.” Chim glanced up. The firefighter stood in front of him held out a large padded envelope, the station’s address typed neatly onto a white label. “This was just dropped off for you.”  
  
“Thanks, García,” Chim took the package from him; García waved a hand dismissively and turned away, passing Buck on the stairs.  
  
Buck moved to stand behind Chim, leaning against the railings. “What’s that?”  
  
“I don’t know,” Chim raised an eyebrow. “I haven’t opened it yet.”  
  
“So open it.” Buck reached over to take the envelope; Chim batted his hand away.  
  
“I was going to, if you’ll give me a chance.” He opened the envelope, lifting the top of it to peer inside.  
  
“Well?” Buck leant forwards, narrowing his eyes as he tried to catch a glimpse of the envelope’s contents. “What- is that the hot firefighter calendar? Dude, open it. I wanna see.”  
  
“Did somebody say hot firefighter calendar?” Hen perked up from her seat on the couch, getting to her feet immediately to join them.  
  
“Okay, vultures. Would you let me take it out of the envelope first?”  
  
“Come on, Mister April,” Hen sat down beside him. “We want to see it.”  
  
“See what?” Eddie wandered over from the kitchen, leaning against the railings beside Buck.  
  
“Oh good,” Chim sighed. “The peanut gallery’s full.”  
  
“The hot firefighter calendar,” Buck said. “They sent Chim a copy.”  
  
“Oh yeah,” Eddie nodded. “The one he beat us both out for?”  
  
“That’s the one.”  
  
Chim pulled the calendar out of the envelope and set it down on the table. Hen whooped a delighted laugh.  
  
“Look at you!” She jabbed at his face on the cover. “Look at our boy. You look so serious. Is that your blue steel?”  
  
“You look good, man.” Eddie clapped him on the shoulder.  
  
Chim smirked down at the picture of himself. “I mean, I wasn’t going to say it myself, but you guys brought it up, so.”  
  
“Skip to April,” Buck insisted, leaning over Chim’s shoulder to flick through the pages. He folded it over once he reached the right month, stood back, and nodded to himself. “Okay, sure. I’m fine with losing to that.”  
  
“No hard feelings, boys,” Chim said. “Some things come with age.”  
  
“So you’re saying we’ll have a better shot when we’re both old like you?”  
  
Chim threw a look at Buck over his shoulder. “I could take you, Buckley.”  
  
“This is amazing,” Hen continued as if neither of them had spoken. “We’re putting this up right now. On April.”  
  
Chim paused. “But it’s November.”  
  
“I literally do not care at all.” Hen took the calendar over to the wall, replacing the one already hanging there. “It’s April all year round now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Chimney & Buck + Tattoos.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	24. Chimney & Buck + Tatoos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck and Chimney are competitive. Maddie is unimpressed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #25, ‘Tattoos’.

“Okay, here are the rules,” Chim raised a finger. “Down to the first floor in the elevator, back up here using the stairs _only_. Fastest time wins. Loser has to get a tattoo of the winner’s choosing. Any use of elevators on the way up is instant disqualification. Clear?”  
  
“I’ve gotta say, this is pretty brave of you, Chim,” Buck grinned crookedly. “I’ve got a couple good tattoo ideas already. Can’t wait to see how they turn out.”  
  
“That’s cute, Buckaroo. Shame you won’t get to see any of them.”  
  
“Elevator down to the first floor? Why don’t we make it interesting and say no elevator at all?”  
  
“Because I don’t want to have to scrape you off the floor when you fall down six flights of stairs.”  
  
Buck stared at him indignantly. “Who says it would be me who’d fall?”  
  
“It would be. I don’t even need to argue my corner.”  
  
“Fine. Why not stairs to the top floor, elevator down to the first floor, stairs back up here?”  
  
Chim considered it. “Interesting.”  
  
“Unless you don’t think you could take all that exercise, old man.”  
  
Chim smirked. “I just want you to remember when you’re in that tattoo parlour that you’ve done this to yourself, kid.”  
  
“You want to go first?”  
  
“Oh no, I’ll let you show me how it’s done.” Chim waved a hand towards the door of his apartment. “Unless you’re chicken?”  
  
Buck scoffed. “Get ready with that stopwatch.”  
  
“You ready?” Chim poised his finger over the button on his phone. “On your marks. Get set-”  
  
The door to the apartment opened. Maddie looked from her little brother to her boyfriend, her eyebrows raised. Buck blinked back at her. Chimney smiled, hoping he was at least convincingly feigning innocence.  
  
“Hey, guys,” Maddie said slowly, setting her purse down on the counter. “What’s going on here?”  
  
“Uh,” Buck started, glancing back at Chim. “We, uh-”  
  
“We just…” Chim tried, looking around the room as if searching for the answer written somewhere on the walls. He faltered. “We were, uh… Buck?”  
  
Buck shook his head. “I’ve got nothing.”  
  
Maddie scrutinised them both carefully. “This wasn’t about to be another one of your competitions, was it?”  
  
Buck resisted the urge to meet Chimney’s eye. Chim said nothing.  
  
“What was it supposed to be this time?” Maddie turned her attention to Chim. He held strong; Buck didn’t.  
  
“Look, Maddie, Chim and I are both adults. If we want to see who can climb the stairs the fastest then-”  
  
“So that’s what it was.” Maddie turned back to Buck. “Do I really need to explain to a couple of firefighters why playing on the stairs is a bad idea?”  
  
“It’s not playing,” Chim corrected, “it’s a battle of honour. I was about to beat your brother.”  
  
“That’s debatable,” Buck muttered.  
  
“And what was the bet this time?”  
  
Buck chewed the inside of his cheek. “Tattoos.”  
  
“Snitch.”  
  
“She always finds out anyway,” Buck shrugged. “That’s something you should know if you’re going to marry her.”  
  
“I do always find out anyway,” Maddie agreed.  
  
“But now you know what we were going to do,” Buck said, “we might as well do it. I’m still all in. Just give us like ten minutes so I can beat your fiancé.”  
  
“There’s no hope in hell of you winning if you think it’ll take ten minutes, Buckaroo.”  
  
“I can do it in two. I was factoring in eight minutes for you. I thought that’d be enough time, unless you need longer?”  
  
Maddie raised her hands in front of her. “_Nobody_ is running up and down the stairs.”  
  
“Only up,” Chim said sheepishly. “We were gonna elevator down.”  
  
Maddie stared at him in exasperation.  
  
“Maddie, come on,” Buck tried. “You know you want to know who’d win.”  
  
Maddie thought it over. Finally, she crossed her arms over her chest. “Okay. I’m not gonna stop you.”  
  
Buck grinned back at Chim.  
  
“_But_,” she continued, “you have to call Bobby first and tell him exactly what you’re doing, so when you both break bones he knows why he’s two firefighters down next shift.”  
  
Buck’s grin faded immediately. He picked up his jacket from the back of the chair and pulled it on. “Yeah, I’m not gonna do that. See you at work, Chim. Bye Maddie.”  
  
The door thudded closed behind him.  
  
“See, I expect it from him,” Maddie tried to suppress a smile, “but you too?”  
  
“He’s about to be my brother-in-law,” Chim shrugged. “I’m getting him on-side before the wedding.”  
  
“He’s already on-side. You just like having someone who’ll do stupid things with you.”  
  
Chim thought about it. “Yeah,” he admitted with a nod. “I kinda do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Madney + Pet Names.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt or just say hi, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


	25. Madney + Pet Names

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maddie hates pet names.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #26, 'Pet Names'.

“How about honey?” Chim offered.  
  
Maddie made a noise of disapproval. “How about no?”  
  
“What’s wrong with honey? It’s a classic!”  
  
“It’s tacky and overused.” Maddie scrunched up her face in disgust. “How about you just call me… Maddie? You know, my name?”  
  
Chim shook his head. “But everyone calls you Maddie.”  
  
“Yeah. Because that’s _my name_.”  
  
“What about darling?”  
  
“Absolutely not.”  
  
“Sweetie?”  
  
“Nope.”  
  
Chimney thought, tipping his head back against the couch cushions. His lips curled into a smirk. “Sugar plum?”  
  
Maddie laughed despite herself. “Don’t you dare.”  
  
“My little pumpkin pie?”  
  
“Howard, I mean it.”  
  
“But you love pumpkin pie!”  
  
“That doesn’t mean I want you to call me it.” Maddie rolled her eyes. “Chim, I hate gooey lovey names. They’re so awful.”  
  
Chim pouted. “You’re breaking my romantic heart. Crushing the very essence of my poetic soul.”  
  
“How terrible of me. I guess you’ll have to live with calling me the same thing everyone else calls me.”  
  
“You wound me, babe.” He sighed. Maddie smiled, leaned into his side, lent her head against his shoulder.  
  
“I don’t mind that one.”  
  
“Hmm?”  
  
“Babe,” Maddie admitted. “But that’s it. That’s the only one I’ll answer to.”  
  
Chimney grinned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: Buck & Abby + Coffee Shops + Souvenirs.
> 
> If you want to leave a prompt you can in the comments below, or come and say hi over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!


	26. Buck & Abby + Coffee Shops + Souvenirs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck and Abby meet for coffee and talk things over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompts #27 ‘Coffee Shops’ and #28 ‘Souvenirs’.

“I wasn’t sure you’d want to see me.”  
  
“Are you kidding?” Buck pulled out the chair so he could join her at the table. “Of course I’d want to see you.”  
  
“You’re sweet.” Abby smiled, gently nudging a cup of coffee towards him. “I got your usual. At least, it was your usual. I don’t know if you’ve changed your order or-”  
  
“This is great,” he interrupted softly. “Thank you.”  
  
Abby sat back in her chair and studied him carefully, her eyes tracing over his face. “How’ve you been?”  
  
“Rough couple of months,” Buck admitted with a weary grin, “but I’m still here. What about you? How was Europe?”  
  
“It was…” Abby shook her head. “It was everything I needed it to be.”  
  
Buck smiled. “I’m really glad.”  
  
“I got you something.” Abby delved into her bag suddenly, rifling through it until she found a brown paper bag. “It’s nothing big. I saw it in Ireland and it reminded me of you. I’m not sure why. I think it’s the face.”  
  
She placed a little toy dog on the table between them, its plastic eyes shining, wide and hopeful. Buck laughed.  
  
“He’s got a little bow tie, see?” She tugged at it. “Irish flag colours.”  
  
“I love it.” Buck picked it up, held it in his hands. He set it down on the table in front of him and turned it so that it was facing her. “Thank you.”  
  
“I didn’t know if you’d come. I thought I might have to adopt him.” Abby glanced down, the fingers of her right hand tapping against the back of her left. “Buck, how we left things… I never meant to do that to you.”  
  
“Abby, it’s fine, really-”  
  
“I kept thinking I was coming right back. I thought I’d spend a few months in Ireland and get back on a plane but then it was time to come home and I just… I wasn’t _ready_. And the longer it went on the worse I felt knowing I’d left you waiting for me and I thought maybe it’d be easier if I let us drift apart and you could move on and find someone who deserves you and…” Abby trailed off. “I’m just… I’m really sorry, Buck. I care about you a lot and I want you to be happy.”  
  
“I care about you a lot too.” Buck rested a hand over hers to still her fidgeting. “And it’s okay. No hard feelings. Promise.”  
  
She met his eye. “You’re sure?”  
  
“One hundred percent.”  
  
“Alright.” She smiled. “So what’ve I missed? What’s happened since I left?”  
  
“Hmm.” Buck took his hand back so he could pick up his cup, sipping thoughtfully at his coffee. “My sister moved here. She’s dating Chimney now. Bobby and Athena were dating and now they’re married. This new guy joined the team, Eddie Diaz. He’s great. Oh, and I got crushed by a firetruck and almost lost my leg but I’m okay now.”  
  
Abby blinked. “What… what was that last one?”  
  
“Yeah,” Buck nodded absently. “There was a whole thing. I was off work for a while. I actually ended up looking after Eddie’s son for him and we got caught in that tsunami. He’s fine, though. I’m fine. We’re both fine.”  
  
Abby raised her eyebrows. “You really meant it when you said you’d had a rough couple of months.”  
  
Buck shrugged.  
  
“But you’re okay now?”  
  
“Yep. Back to work and everything.”  
  
“Good. That’s great, Buck.” She watched him carefully, another smile curling the corners of her mouth. “And is there anyone special?”  
  
Buck grinned, lifted his coffee again, and took another sip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: The Team + Wine.
> 
> If you have any fluff prompts for me, I'd love to hear them! You can leave them in the comments below or over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!


	27. The Team + Wine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck doesn’t understand wine. Hen is astounded. Athena just wants a quiet Thanksgiving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for Flufftober prompt #29, ‘Wine’.

“All wine tastes exactly the same. There’s literally no difference between any of it.”  
  
Hen raised an eyebrow. “You’re not serious.”  
  
“The only difference between a ten dollar bottle of wine and a three hundred dollar bottle of wine is the price,” Buck shrugged.  
  
Hen stared across the table at Maddie. “He was the kid who ate cereal for dinner and thought it was fine cuisine, wasn’t he?”  
  
Maddie hummed. “Yeah, he was.”  
  
“I’m right,” Buck insisted. He elbowed Eddie beside him, jostling him enough to send splatters of red wine onto the tablecloth. ‘Eddie, tell them I’m right.”  
  
“Mm,” Eddie grimaced. “You’re on your own with this one, man.”  
  
“But I’m _right_.”  
  
“Turkey’s up,” Bobby announced, setting the platter down in the middle of the table. “Anybody want to carve?”  
  
“Here, let me.” Athena stood up and took the carving knife from the middle of the table, leaning over so she could reach the turkey. “You take a break.”  
  
“Athena,” Buck sat up straight, “tell them I’m right.”  
  
“About what?”  
  
“Kinda hoped you’d have my back without needing to ask, but whatever.”  
  
Athena levelled a steady look at him.  
  
“Tell them cheap wine and expensive wine taste exactly the same.”  
  
Athena looked at Buck. She turned her attention to the exasperation on Hen’s face, the exhaustion on Eddie’s, the utter resignation on Maddie’s. “I’m sorry?”  
  
“Grapes are grapes! They’re all the same!”  
  
Beside Athena, Bobby rubbed his forehead.  
  
“You’re young,” she said with a dismissive shake of the head. “You’ll learn.”  
  
“Will I?” Buck crossed his arms skeptically over his chest.  
  
“Yeah,” Hen rested her chin in her hand, “_will_ he?”  
  
“Either he learns that or we learn to stop inviting him to Thanksgiving dinner,” Chimney said.  
  
Buck furrowed his brow. “We planned this in the firehouse. _I was there_. You think if nobody had mentioned it to me I just wouldn’t have worked out that Bobby and Athena were hosting Thanksgiving?”  
  
Chim shrugged. “It wouldn’t have mattered. A dinner’s a dinner. They’re all the same, right Buckaroo?”  
  
Eddie cleared his throat to conceal a laugh.  
  
“No. Not at all.”  
  
“Look, why don’t we just put this aside for ten minutes and eat?” Bobby raised his hands placatingly. “We can revisit Buck’s appalling palate later.”  
  
Buck pouted, affronted; Bobby pretended not to notice him.  
  
“Be nice,” Athena warned them. “Buck’s entitled to his opinion.”  
  
Buck directed a smug smile at Hen.  
  
“Even if that opinion is tragically incorrect,” Athena finished.  
  
Buck sighed. He swilled his own wine around the glass and drank a mouthful. “It tastes like every other wine I’ve ever drunk.”  
  
“That’s probably because you were in charge of bringing the wine and you brought the only bottle you’ve ever actually had.” Hen rolled her eyes.  
  
“Why would I bother buying any others when it all _tastes the same_?”  
  
“Next year,” Athena murmured to Bobby as she piled turkey onto a plate, “you go ahead and invite them all here. We’ll leave a key under the mat and they can let themselves in.”  
  
Bobby smirked. “And where will we be?”  
  
“Out of town.” Athena glanced up as Buck and Hen’s bickering grew louder. “Maybe out of state.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: [tbd] + Pumpkin.
> 
> I’ve almost finished the Flufftober prompts now, so if you have any more fluff prompts you’d like to see written for 9-1-1, please send them my way! You can leave them in the comments below or over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!


	28. Bathena & The Team + Pumpkin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby and Athena try to establish who the better cook is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for this prompt from Anon on Tumblr: "A Bathena Pumpkin pie vs Sweet Potato pie contest. Firefam decides the winner but Buck can’t choose because he loves both of his parents cooking equally" and for Flufftober prompt #30, ‘Pumpkin’.

“I only stopped by to drop off coffee,” Maddie protested, the paper cup carrier held carefully in both hands.  
  
“Five people means we won’t have a tie.” Athena took the coffee from her and set it down in the middle of the table, guiding Maddie into an empty seat. “All we need from you is an answer: which one’s your favourite?”  
  
Maddie looked at the two plates in front of her. “Pie?”  
  
“Mm,” Chim hummed from opposite her, his mouth full. “Pumpkin versus sweet potato. They’re competing now, apparently.”  
  
“Just for fun,” Bobby added, although from the way he was intently watching the members of his team around the table, Maddie wasn’t so sure it was as low stakes as he was making it out to be.  
  
“Yes, definitely,” Athena waved a hand absently. “So why don’t you take a bite of both and let us know what you think? You know, for fun.”  
  
“The sweet potato's better.” Hen set her fork down. “No question about it.”  
  
Athena smiled smugly. “I always knew you were smart.”  
  
“Nope. It’s the pumpkin.” Chim scraped the last of the pastry onto his fork. “It’s a masterpiece.”  
  
Bobby grinned at his wife. “That’s pretty hard to argue with.”  
  
Eddie chewed thoughtfully, considered both pies, and shook his head. “Hen’s right. Sweet potato pie, hands down.”  
  
Maddie took a careful bite of both pies and tried not to think about the absurdity of the situation. “I think,” she said slowly, “I agree with Chim. The pumpkin is better.”  
  
“You two deserve each other,” Athena said. “I hope you have a wonderful life together with your terrible taste in pies.”  
  
“I would argue they both have incredible culinary taste,” Bobby shrugged.  
  
“Looks like you’re tied, guys.” Chim piled the empty plates together on the table. “It’s all on you, Buckaroo. You’re the deciding vote.”  
  
Six pairs of eyes swivelled to where Buck sat at the end of the table. He looked from Bobby to Athena, an expression on his face that reminded Maddie an awful lot of a deer caught in the headlights.  
  
“I told you before,” Buck raised his palms in front of him, his fork still held in his right hand, “I like both your food equally.”  
  
“Right,” Bobby nodded. “But if you had to choose, you would say…”  
  
“That I like them both the same,” Buck finished for him. “They’re both great. _You’re_ both great. I don’t have a favourite.”  
  
“That’s very sweet,” Athena said, “but I need you to be honest and tell Bobby mine’s better and then we can all move on from this.”  
  
“Or you can be honest and tell Athena _mine’s_ better.”  
  
Buck drummed the fingers of his left hand against the tabletop, looking from one empty plate to the other. “I don’t know. Can I have more?”  
  
“Of course you can.” Athena moved around the table to stand behind him, resting a hand on his shoulder. “Once you pick which one’s better.”  
  
Buck looked over his shoulder at her. Then, hesitantly, he looked over at Bobby again.  
  
“You’re gonna break him,” Hen snorted. “It’s like you’re asking him to pick between his parents.”  
  
“I think…” Buck started. He paused, frowning at the plates in front of him, a crease appearing between his eyebrows.  
  
They waited.  
  
“You think…” Bobby prompted.  
  
Buck stayed silent.  
  
“And you broke him.” Hen tilted her head, as if to say _I told you so_.  
  
“I think,” Buck said again, “that I like them both the same.”  
  
“Mmhm,” Athena nodded, “you said that already.”  
  
“It’s true,” he shrugged. “I don’t have a favourite. I can’t pick one. You both win.”  
  
Athena and Bobby gave simultaneous sighs of disappointment.  
  
“You said this was just for fun,” Maddie reminded them with a smile.  
  
“And pride,” Bobby admitted. “Bragging rights may have been at stake.”  
  
Buck looked at Athena tentatively. “Can I still have more?”  
  
Athena rolled her eyes, took the plates off the counter and set them both in front of him. “Only because I like you.”  
  
Buck grinned at her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Next up: TBD
> 
> I’ve almost finished the Flufftober prompts now, so if you have any more fluff prompts you’d like to see written for 9-1-1, please send them my way! You can leave them in the comments below or over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!


	29. Buck & Bobby + Clean Shirts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck accidentally calls Bobby ‘dad’.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “Prompt: Buck was a bit knocked around on a call and so he goes to change his shirt…and he can’t find his spare and he’s like rummaging around and Bobby’s like “what did you lose” and Buck’s just “dAD-“ and then realizes what he said  
Bobby becomes so f t and while Buck frantically apologizes Bobby just “shut up” and hugs him”
> 
> Thank you to Circadiana for your prompt! I made a couple of little changes but I hope you still like it!

“Why is it always you?” Hen stared across the truck in disbelief.  
  
Buck looked down at the mud stains on his shirt. “Maybe I’m cursed.”  
  
“Or maybe you’re the only one capable of falling down a hill into a ditch,” Chim offered instead.  
  
Hen shrugged. “They both sound like pretty accurate explanations to me.”  
  
Buck hummed noncommittally. He threw open the door as the truck came to a stop and dropped down to the ground. “I think I’m gonna take a shower.”

*

Dressed in a clean pair of pants and a mud-free vest, Buck frowned at the contents of his open locker.

“Come on,” he muttered, rifling through it, pushing crumpled laundry to the side to make space. “I know there’s one here somewhere.”

“You know, if you cleaned your locker out every once in a while you wouldn’t lose things in it.”

Buck glanced over his shoulder. Bobby leant against the locker room door, arms crossed over his chest, eyebrows raised.

“I haven’t lost anything,” Buck insisted. “I know there’s a clean shirt in here, I just… can’t see it right now.”

“You can’t see anything in there. It’s a pile of junk.”

“It’s not _that_ bad.”

“It’s disgusting. I- is that a banana peel?” Bobby grimaced. “Buck, really?”

“Fine, Dad, I’ll clean it out before the end of shift. Aha!” Buck reached into his locker suddenly, brought out his shirt and pulled it over his head. He turned to grin triumphantly at Bobby. “Told you it was in here.”

Bobby stared back at him wordlessly.

Buck paused. “What? I said I’d clean it out.”

“You called me dad.”

“What? When?”

“Just now.” Bobby’s expression was unreadable.

“I…” Buck faltered. His face began to redden as the words replayed in his mind. “Oh God. I’m sorry. That’s… that’s really embarrassing.”

“Buck-”

“I’m really sorry. If you could maybe not mention this to Hen and Chim I’d appreciate it. They’d never let me live it down. God, Bobby, I’m really-”

Bobby crossed the room and pulled Buck into a hug. Buck froze. Then, hesitantly, he hugged back.

Bobby patted him on the back as he let go. “I’d be proud if I was. Your dad, I mean.”

Buck felt the corners of his mouth twitch into a smile. He cleared his throat, rubbing at the back of his neck. “Thanks, Bobby.”

Bobby smiled back at him and turned to leave. He paused in the doorway, one hand resting on the doorframe. “Clean your locker.”

Buck rolled his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> If you have any fluff prompts you’d like to see written for 9-1-1, please send them my way! You can leave them in the comments below or over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!


	30. Maddie & Buck + Wedding Dress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck doesn’t really know anything about wedding dresses, but he’s trying his best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: "How about a Buck and Maddie going shopping for her wedding dress?"
> 
> Thank you to the Tumblr Anon who left this prompt!

Buck fidgeted on the leather couch they’d left him on. He clasped his hands together between his knees, tapped his foot against the floor, traced the pattern of the border along the top of the wall. He made awkward eye contact with the girl behind the counter, not for the first time in the last ten minutes. He smiled politely; just as before, she smiled politely back.  
  
“I’m not sure I’m really that qualified for this kinda thing,” he’d admitted the week before, when Maddie had asked him to come with her. “What about one of your friends from the call centre? Or Athena? She’d go.”  
  
“But you’re family,” she’d replied. “Aside from Chim’s, yours is the only opinion that matters to me.”  
  
So he’d agreed. He still felt unbelievably out of place in the intimidatingly empty store - “they like to focus on one customer at a time,” Maddie had whispered when they’d walked in - and he still wasn’t sure he was even qualified to give an opinion that meant anything, but he’d promised his sister, so here he was. And besides, he’d kinda panicked and binge-watched a season or two of _Say Yes to the Dress_ between shifts, so maybe he’d at least have _some_ idea of what was going on after all.  
  
“First one.” Maddie emerged from the dressing room, a sales consultant holding the train of the dress in both hands as they walked back towards him. Maddie stood on the pedestal, arms ever so slightly lifted from her sides. “What do you think?”  
  
Buck looked at her uncertainly. “It’s… nice?”  
  
Maddie raised her eyebrows at him. “Nice?” She repeated.  
  
“Uh,” Buck frowned. “Yeah?”  
  
“You know you’re a terrible liar? Always have been, even when you were little. You scrunch up your nose.”  
  
Buck rubbed self-consciously at his face. “I don’t.”  
  
“That was a test. I hate this one.”  
  
“Oh!” Buck visibly relaxed. “That’s great, because it looks awful. It makes you look a weird shape.”  
  
The sales consultant beside Maddie and the girl behind the counter exchanged a glance.  
  
“And that’s the sort of review you only get from a little brother,” Maddie said. “Okay. Wait there while I try another one.” She turned back to him suddenly. “And remember, I know when you’re lying, Evan. I want your honest reactions.”  
  
So he gave her them.  
  
“The colour looks like it’s been in an attic for a hundred years.”  
  
“The neck thing looks like it’s trying to eat you.”  
  
“It looks kinda…” Buck tilted his head to the side, “uneven?”  
  
“It’s asymmetrical,” the sale consultant supplied, her lips pressed into a forced smile.  
  
Buck looked at her in disbelief. “You mean they did that on purpose?”  
  
He could still hear Maddie laughing as she changed into the next dress.  
  
“Okay.” Maddie drew back the dressing room curtain and stepped out, moving slowly to the centre of the room. “What do you think of this one?”  
  
Buck was silent. He considered her thoughtfully, resting his chin in his hand.  
  
“Well?” Maddie prompted.  
  
Buck sat back. “As your brother, I want you to appreciate how much I don’t want to say this.”  
  
Maddie waited.  
  
“You look beautiful. Really. Chim’s a lucky guy.”  
  
The sales consultant let out a muted sigh of relief.  
  
“You think so?” Maddie ran her hands over the smooth satin of the skirt, brushing her fingers over the pearlescent beading.  
  
“I know so.”  
“Good.” Maddie straightened a wrinkle in the fabric. “It’d be pretty awkward if you had to walk me down the aisle in a dress you thought I looked terrible in.”  
  
Buck snorted. Then, as her words settled over him, he paused. “Wait. You… You want me to give you away?”  
  
“Well, it’d be nice not to have to walk into the church on my own,” Maddie teased. “What do you say?”  
  
“I… me?”  
  
“You and Chimney are the most important people in my life,” Maddie said, stepping down from the pedestal to stand in front of him. “It would mean the world to me to have my little brother walk me down the aisle.”  
  
Buck was silent.  
  
“If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I won’t hate you or anything. But you’re my first choice.”  
  
“You don’t want to call dad and see if he’ll do it or-”  
  
“I’ll invite them to the wedding, sure, but you know what they’re like.” Maddie rolled her eyes. “But even if they do come, I’d still want you to do it. You were there for me after everything with Doug and I just-”  
  
“Maddie,” he cut her off. “If it’s what you want, then of course I’ll walk you down the aisle. I’d be honoured.”  
  
Maddie gave a relieved laugh. “You’re the best. Thank you.”  
  
“Don’t mention it,” Buck grinned. He hesitated. “Actually, do mention it. I don’t want Chim to forget that I’m central to his wedding. I’m gonna tell him every day until you get married, and then remind him about it every day for the rest of his life.”  
  
“You’ll scare him off before I get the chance to marry him.”  
  
“Nah,” Buck shook his head. “He loves you enough to put up with me as his brother-in-law. He told me himself.”  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“Yeah, before he proposed.”  
  
Maddie smiled to herself. Slowly, she turned to the sales consultant waiting patiently beside her. “I think I’ll take this one, please.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> If you have any 9-1-1 prompts you'd like to see written, please send them my way! I’m mostly writing fluff at the moment but I’ve had one or two angsty prompts that I really want to write, so I don’t mind either! You can leave them in the comments below or over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!


	31. The Team + Mom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Buck calls Athena ‘Mom’.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to the Anon on Tumblr who prompted ‘Buck calling Athena mom after Hen and Chim were teasing him’, and to kiki742 on Tumblr who also asked for Buck calling Athena ‘Mom’.
> 
> Also thank you to theladyandthewolves over on Tumblr who commented on a gifset of the meteorite scene that Chimney was making an Indiana Jones reference that completely went over Buck’s head, because it completely went over _my_ head too and this whole fic was inspired by that, so thank you!

“All I’m saying is you should at _least_ have seen Indiana Jones,” Chim scoffed. “There’s no excuse. It’s, like, one of the defining staples of the 80s.”  
  
Buck stared across the couch at him. “I wasn’t alive in the 80s.”  
  
“I don’t care. Ever heard of Netflix? _Literally_ no excuse.”  
  
“I think I saw one of them, maybe.”  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“Shia LaBeouf was in it and there were aliens at the end.”  
  
“Oh God.” Chim held his head in his hands. He peered despondently through his fingers at Hen and Eddie. “Is he serious? Tell me he’s not serious.”  
  
Eddie raised his eyebrows silently, an unspoken declaration: _you’re on your own with this one_.  
  
“It’s like he came out of some weird bubble with no pop culture,” Hen tilted her head curiously. “How does that happen?”  
  
“No it’s not,” Buck insisted. “I’m sure there are plenty of people that haven’t seen those stupid movies.”  
  
“I’m sorry,” Chim lowered his hands from his face. “What was that you just said about the greatest cinematic trilogy of the 20th century?”  
  
“Cap,” Buck whined, tipping his head back against the couch cushions; he sought out Bobby and Athena behind them in the firehouse kitchen. “Tell them it’s not my fault I don’t know old stuff.”  
  
Bobby grimaced. “Indiana Jones isn’t ‘_old stuff_’. And Chim has a point, Buck: you never heard of Netflix?”  
  
“Aw, Buckaroo,” Hen patted him sympathetically on the shoulder. “Even your dad won’t stick up for you.”  
  
Bobby glanced at Athena and rolled his eyes.  
  
“Athena,” Buck tried again, frowning petulantly, “tell them.”  
  
“Okay.” Athena walked over to the couch, resting a hand absently on Buck’s head. “Hen, Chimney, leave him alone.”  
  
Buck stuck his tongue out at them.  
  
“And you,” Athena tapped him on the head, “watch the other movies. Please. We’re begging you.”  
  
Buck grinned up at her. “Thanks, Mom.”  
  
Athena faltered. She watched the others from the corner of her eye, waiting for someone to comment, to point out what Buck had just called her.  
  
None of them so much as blinked.  
  
Athena patted him on the head again and rejoined Bobby in the kitchen. She leant back against the counter, her hands gripping the edge of the smooth marble. “Did you… did you hear that?”  
  
“Well,” Bobby shrugged, “they’ve decided I’m Buck’s dad, so it makes sense. I guess he’s yours now too. Congrats on your third kid.”  
  
Athena laughed. “Then please, do something about our son’s lack of 80s movie knowledge. He’s making me feel old.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Up next: Chim & Buck + Tattoos (Part Two).
> 
> If you have any 9-1-1 prompts you'd like to see written, please send them my way! You can leave them in the comments below or over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!


	32. Chimney & Buck + Tatoos (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team find out about Buck and Chim's bet. Follow-up to #24, 'Chimney & Buck + Tattoos'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Circadiana, who asked for a second part to the' Chimney & Buck + Tattoos' fic I posted a couple of weeks ago. 
> 
> The prompt, slightly edited: "Chim somehow wins but on the way down falls and bruises his face and it looks like he was in a fight...and so Buck has to get the tattoo...so when they come into the house the next day the fam sees Buck all bandaged up and Chimney with this big bruise so they’re like TF". 
> 
> Here you go! It's not exactly what you originally prompted, but I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> **Important update in the end notes - please read it! **

“Morning, Hen.”  
  
“Morning, Chim.” Hen glanced up briefly as he came up the stairs, her gaze drifting back to the open book in her lap.  
  
She paused. She looked back up at him slowly, gaped, and set her book down on the couch beside her.  
  
“What the _hell_ happened to you?”  
  
“Huh?”  
  
Hen gestured to her chin.  
  
Chim probed experimentally at the purpling bruise along his jaw. He winced. “Oh yeah. That.”  
  
“Hey, Hen.” Buck grinned at her as he bounded up the stairs behind them. Her eyes went immediately to the bandage around his left bicep.  
  
“What…” Hen looked from Buck to Chim and back to Buck again. “Did you guys get mugged or something?”  
  
“Uh,” Buck’s grin twitched. “Yeah. Let’s go with that.”  
  
“No, let’s not go with that,” Chim scoffed. “I won, fair and square. I’m telling everyone.”  
  
“Won what?” Eddie sat down on the arm of the couch and looked at them both carefully. He frowned at Buck. “Did you get another tattoo?”  
  
“You _can’t_ tell everyone,” Buck ignored the question, “because then Bobby will know and he’ll think we’re both idiots.”  
  
“We all already know you’re both idiots,” Hen said. “And whatever it is, I’m sure Bobby’ll find out anyway.”  
  
“Find out what?” Bobby paused at the top of the stairs. He raised his eyebrows at Chim’s bruise and Buck’s arm, but didn’t comment.  
  
Buck studied the ground beneath his feet, picking absently at the edges of his bandage. Chim stared politely back at Bobby, a faux puzzled expression on his face. “Nothing, Cap. It’s all good.”  
  
Bobby hummed. He turned to focus his attention on Buck, who was still trying vehemently not to meet his eye. “Buck? Anything to add?”  
  
“Uh,” Buck glanced sideways at Chim; Chimney shook his head almost imperceptibly. “No?”  
  
The sirens rang overhead.  
  
“Alright,” Bobby straightened, “let’s move out.”  
  
Buck was halfway down the stairs before Bobby had finished his sentence.

*

Buck was pretty proud of his efforts, even if he did say so himself. He’d kept his mouth shut under the weight of Bobby’s expectant stare, and he hadn’t even broken when Eddie had tilted his head a little to the side like a curious puppy and waited for an explanation. He’d made it four hours into their shift: by his standards, that was practically impressive.

And anyway, it wasn’t his fault Hen had brought the conversation back around to him at the dinner table.

“So it’s a tattoo, huh?” She jabbed a finger towards the bandage; he shuffled along on the bench until he was out of her reach. “What prompted that?”

_Don’t snitch_, Chim mouthed from opposite him. Buck pressed his lips together and shrugged.

“Chim won something,” Hen continued. “What was it? A bet? Loser gets a tattoo?”

“That’s all just circumstantial,” Chim interrupted. “Coincidence.”

“I wasn’t asking you,” Hen didn’t look at him, “I was asking Buck.”

“Like Chim said,” Buck shrugged again. “Coincidence.”

“So I’m thinking,” Hen continued, “going by that masterpiece of a bruise Chim’s got going on, that it was something stupid. I’m just trying to work out _how_ stupid.”

“You really think we’d do something reckless, Hen?” Chim pressed a hand to his chest. “I’m hurt. Truly. You wound me.”

“You wounded yourself,” she pointed out. “So what was it, Buckaroo? Spill.”

“We-”

“-didn’t do anything,” Chim cut him off with a glare. “Nothing at all. Nothing happened.”

“So you didn’t win anything after all?” Hen raised an eyebrow.

Chim hesitated. “Look-”

“We were seeing who could climb the stairs in Chim and Maddie’s apartment building the fastest,” Buck admitted. “We were gonna do it last week but Maddie came home and shut us down so we had a rematch last night while she was at work and Chim won except I’m like 90% sure he cheated because he tripped on the way back up and hit his chin and I don’t understand how you could do the agreed-upon route and fall and still come first but a bet’s a bet and I’m not a chicken so I got the tattoo anyway.”

A silence fell over the table.

Bobby set the last plate down and took his seat. “I’m sorry,” he said, “run that by me again?”

“That is… somehow even stupider than I thought it’d be,” Hen snorted.

“Stairs?” Eddie repeated. “You were racing each other up the stairs?”

“I can’t believe you snitched on us,” Chim shook his head. “_Again_.”

“You were the one who wanted to tell everyone you won,” Buck argued. “Next time we’ll get our story straight before anyone asks.”

“There won’t _be_ a next time,” Bobby said firmly, “because this is the end of any and all reckless competitions. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Cap,” Buck and Chim muttered together.

“I give them one week before they do something stupid again,” Hen whispered to Eddie.

Eddie scoffed. “If they make it that long it’ll be a miracle. I’m saying three days.”

“You’re on.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed it, kudos and comments are always appreciated!
> 
> **IMPORTANT NOTE:** Some of you might've noticed that 'Brighter Days' is now a series! I've realised that every time I post a new chapter in this fic it shows up in tags for a lot of characters and relationships, even when that chapter maybe doesn't relate to those characters or relationships in particular. I'm still going to be posting fics and filling your prompts, but from now on they'll be separate works and part of the 'Brighter Days' series rather than new chapters here, so that I'm not filling up the Bathena tag when I post Buddie or the Buddie tag when I post Madney and so on!
> 
> This work is going to stay as the fics I wrote for Flufftober (plus this sequel to a Flufftober prompt). The few fics posted after that ('Buck & Bobby + Clean Shirts', 'Firekids & Buck + Problem Solving', 'Maddie & Buck + Wedding Dress', 'The Team + Mom') will be reposted and made part of this series, and then deleted from this work. If you left a comment on any of those chapters, I've read them all and I am so so grateful. If you left a prompt under any of those chapters, I have it written down, so don't worry! This'll also mean that when I fill prompts for people, I can gift the work to you on here instead of just mentioning you in the note at the beginning! 
> 
> Thank you so much for all your support and lovely comments over the last month or so! To keep being notified when new works are up, please make sure you click on the 'Brighter Days' series and subscribe! 
> 
> If you have any prompts for me, you're welcome to leave them in the comments below, or over [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos and comments are always welcome if you enjoyed it, and if you want to follow the rest of my flufftober prompt fills as I post them, make sure you subscribe! 
> 
> This was meant to be fairly short but it ended up being over 2000 words somehow. They won't all be that long! 
> 
> If you want to say hi or leave a prompt, I'm over on Tumblr [here](http://lionheartedghost.tumblr.com/)!


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